LAS VEGAS. (UNLVRebels.com) - After a 2020 campaign that was cut short due to the pandemic and an extended, unusual offseason, the long - awaited return of Rebel softball is here as UNLV opens the 2021 season by hosting the Rebel Kickoff at Eller Media Stadium, February 12-14. UNLV will begin its 37th season in program history by hosting a home tournament for the 17th straight year. The three-day tournament begins Friday, February 12 at 10 a.m. and features UNLV, Southern Utah, Dixie State and the No. 2-ranked team in the country, the Washington Huskies.
The Scarlet and Gray will play five games on opening weekend, two each against Southern Utah and Dixie State and one against Washington. UNLV will face Southern Utah at 3 p.m. Friday, followed by a 5:30 p.m. matchup against Dixie State. On day two, the Rebels will face their toughest test of the weekend, taking on the Washington Huskies, who rank second in the country in both major polls heading into opening weekend. UNLV will conclude the night with a second bout against Dixie State at 5:30 p.m. before wrapping up the weekend with another showdown against the Thunderbirds of Southern Utah at 11 a.m. Sunday morning.
When the Rebels began the 2020 season, they had one thing on their minds - NCAA Tournament or bust. The year prior ended in disappointment as UNLV was one of the first four teams left out of the field after a 36-14 record - the program's most wins since 2007. Last spring, the Rebels were on a mission and looked as if they were on track to return to the NCAA postseason for the first time since 2009 as they began the year 21-5 to match the second-best start by a UNLV softball squad all time. Unfortunately, just as they were ready to make their run in the Mountain West, the season came to an abrupt halt and the NCAA dreams would have to be put on hold another year.
UNLV is poised to make a real run at the postseason as the Rebels will have the majority of its key players back, including six full-time starters in the field and two of three pitchers back from a staff whose ERA ranked 14th in the country a season ago. UNLV also welcomes an eight-person freshman class and while it will be difficult to break into the rotation with all the experience coming back, the underclassmen will have to be ready for anything in this Covid-altered season.
UNLV will be home again next weekend to host the UNLV Desert Classic, Feb. 19-21.
QUICK HITTERS
•
Kristie Fox enters her fourth season with a 90-39 record in her first three years
• Her 90 wins through seasons are third-most through first three seasons among all-time UNLV softball coaches
• The Rebels were 21-5 in 2020 before the season was canceled due to the pandemic, matching the second-best start through 26 games in program history
• After going 2-3 on opening weekend in 2020, UNLV won 19 of their last 21 games
• The Rebels were picked to finish second in the Mountain West Coaches Preseason Poll - their highest predicted finish since 2012 and just the fourth time since they joined the conference in 2000 they had ranked higher than third in the annual poll
• In 2020, the Rebels had a season-high winning streak of seven games was longest under Fox and longest since the 2010 team won 10 straight at one point
• As it has always been under Fox, defense was a strong point with the Rebels' .980 fielding percentage first in the Mountain West and ranked fifth in the country, marking the second straight year finishing in the top-10 in that category
• The Rebels return their top eight hitters from a 2020 squad that had four players hit over .300.
• Rebels return two of three pitchers from a staff whose 1.71 ERA finished ranked 14th in the country and was on pace to be ninth-best ERA in program history and best since 2005.
• All three Mountain West All-Conference selections from last spring return this year - senior
Justine Federe, junior
Mia Trejo and sophomore
Jenny Bressler
• Every infield starter returns with
Mia Trejo (1B),
Justine Federe (2B),
Samantha Diaz (22) and
Lauryn Barker entering the season with a combined 497 career starts, 49 home runs and 286 RBI
• Two of three full-time starters in the outfield -
Lauren Tycksen &
Maddie Schmidt - along with two upperclassmen with significant outfield experience return -
Statia Cermak &
Jaclyn Candelas
• Junior
Julia Vollmer is the most experience returner behind the plate with 44 starts over two seasons
•
Andy Jarvis was promoted to Associate Head Coach prior to the 2020 campaign after being an intergral part of the success at the plate and the stellar defense in the outfield
• Pitching coach
Emily Vincent, who was a standout pitcher at McNeese State, enters her third season after leading the pitching staff to the top ERA in the conference each of the last two seasons
RETURNING STAT LEADERS
•
Batting avg. (Min. 50 ABs): Justine Federe, 2B (.376);
Maddie Schmidt, LF (.365);
Mia Trejo, 1B (.342)
•
Hits: Justine Federe, 2B (32);
Maddie Schmidt, LF (27);
Mia Trejo, 1B (26)
•
Doubles: Samantha Diaz, SS (6);
Justine Federe, 2B (5);
Mia Trejo, 1B (5)
•
Home runs: Justine Federe, 2B (6);
Samantha Diaz, SS (4);
Mia Trejo, 1B (3)
•
RBI: Justine Federe, 2B (26);
Mia Trejo, 1B (21);
Samantha Diaz, SS (17)
•
Runs scored: Justine Federe, 2B (22);
Maddie Schmidt, LF (20);
Samantha Diaz, SS (15)
•
ERA: Jenny Bressler (1.27);
Charlie Masterson (1.92)
•
Strikeouts:
Jenny Bressler (89);
Charlie Masterson (36)
•
Fielding percentage: Lauren Tycksen, CF (1.000)
Mia Trejo, 1B .995;
Lauryn Barker, 3B (.986)
LIVE STATS/UPDATES
Live stats and links to video for all five games are available at
www.UNLVRebels.com. Live updates can also be found by following @UNLVSoftball on twitter. Please visit the Rebel Kickoff Tournament page for the full weekend schedule and tournament info:
https://unlvrebels.com/feature/2021RebelKickoff
