Final Season Preparations Underway
The preseason No. 5-ranked University of Michigan softball team begins the final preparation stage for its 1999 season. The Wolverines, 56-7 a year ago with trophies from the Big Ten season, Big Ten Tournament and NCAA Regional 3 championships, open the 22nd year of varsity softball vs. No. 4 Washington February 19 at the Louisville Slugger Classic in Gainesville, Fla.

Melissa Gentile Out for 1999 Season
All-American and All-Big Ten catcher Melissa Gentile (O'Fallon, Mo./Wentzville HS) will miss the 1999 Michigan softball season following late November back surgery on two herniated disks and bulges surrounding the injured disks. The junior, who set both Michigan season (13) and career (19) home run records last season, had played through pain throughout her U-M career, but increasing pain led her to the surgical procedure. Gentile's return to the Michigan lineup will be determined on an ongoing basis.

"Skeeter will be lending her expertise to our group of catchers," said U-M head coach Carol Hutchins. "The good news is we won't miss a beat behind the plate going with sophomore Kim Bugel, but the .401 bat, 57 RBIs and 13 home runs will be hard to replace."

New Look for New Season
Softball at the University of Michigan has been fairly predictable over the past few seasons with coaches on both sides of the diamond generally knowing what to expect from personnel up-and-down the Wolverine lineup. But that was the past.

The graduation of four players, including a pair of All-American four-year starters, leave the 1999 edition of Michigan softball one projecting a whole different look throughout the roster. Five first-year collegiate players join 13 Wolverine returnees, including seven starters, for the 22nd season of U-M varsity softball.

"We have a lot of untested people, both newcomers and returnees, mixed with a lot of veterans," said head coach Carol Hutchins, preparing for her 15th season directing the Michigan program. "This is a good group of players who have shown a good work ethic, and that's the first step in having success this spring."

U-M Program One of 1990's Best
The six NCAA Tournament appearances, five Big Ten titles, four regional and Big Ten Tournament championships and four NCAA Women's College World Series trips in the 1990s not only fill trophy cases, but help to make the Michigan softball program one of the nation's best in this decade. The Wolverines head into the 1999 season with a 395-158-1 record over the past nine seasons. The 395 victories ranks eighth and the .714 winning percentage ranks No. 11 among all NCAA Division I programs. . . . The 56-7 record compiled by the 1998 Wolverines is the 16th-best season win percentage in NCAA Division I history.

Wolverines Show Experienced Infield
Michigan has one of the most experienced infields in the country with only one new player on the dirt, freshman second baseman Kelsey Kollen (Cerritos, Calif./Santa Ana Mater Dei HS). Two-time All-American first baseman Traci Conrad (Frankfort, Ill./Lincoln-Way HS) anchors the infield for a fourth season and the left side - junior third baseman Pam Kosanke (Chesterfield, Mo./Parkway Central HS) and sophomore shortstop Rebecca Tune (Aloha, Ore./Jesuit HS) - are into a second season together. Melissa Taylor (Petersburg, Mich./Summerfield HS), the starter at second last season now expected to be an outfield regular, as well as sophomore Courtney Murdock (Barrington, Ill./Barrington HS) and freshman Stefanie Volpe (Plymouth, Mich./Plymouth-Salem HS) give Michigan flexibility in its infield lineup.

Davie, Mika Anchor Outfield
Two of four starters are back in the Michigan outfield -- seniors Catherine Davie (Westlake Village, Calif./Westlake HS) in left and Tammy Mika (Brighton, Mich./Brighton HS) in right. The duo is joined by speedy sophomore Melissa Taylor, who played the 1998 season at second base. Outfield depth is provided by junior Lisa Beard (Chelsea, Mich./Chelsea HS), sophomore Chrissy Garza (Southgate, Mich./Anderson HS) as well as freshmen Mary Conner (Lake Orion, Mich./Lake Orion HS) and Kristen Hunter (Sterling Heights, Mich./Warren Cousino HS).

Wolverine Battery Unknowns
Michigan's pitching and catching positions are the biggest unknowns at the preseason, according to Carol Hutchins.

"In the past the pitchers knew who they were behind and who was our go-to pitcher," said Hutchins in reference to graduated school record-holder Sara Griffin. "This season there is a change in pitching attitude in that everyone knows they will get the ball and need to do their best with the opportunity."

The Wolverines saw good performances over the last month of the season from Jamie Gillies (Saugus, Calif./Saugus HS), including back-to-back wins over Iowa to clinch the Big Ten Tournament title, and the junior enters the season as the leader of the pitching staff. Sophomore Marie Barda (Darien, Ill./Hinsdale South HS) brings an improved focus and intensity into the season while freshman Kate Eiland (Fresno, Calif./Clovis West HS) offers depth through her background of highly-competitive play. Michigan will also work freshman Mary Conner in at pitcher.

The catching position suffered a blow with the loss of All-American Melissa Gentile for the season. Stepping in for Gentile will be sophomore Kim Bugel (Oak Forest, Ill./Oak Forest HS) who had several catching stints last season. Junior Karmen Lappo (Muskegon, Mich./North Muskegon HS) and freshman Stefanie Volpe will backup Bugel.

Hot Bats Back in Wolverine Lineup
Michigan's 1999 offense will be one which finds a way to make runs happen, says head coach Carol Hutchins. Led by the hot bat of career batting average leader Traci Conrad (.391), Michigan returns five players who hit better than .275 a year ago. Hutchins says the Wolverines possess good speed throughout the roster, a skill the coaching staff looks to capitalize on.

Top Five Preseason Ranking for U-M
For the third consecutive season, Michigan begins its softball season ranked among the nation's top five teams in the USA Today/NFCA Coaches Poll. The Wolverines, who finished tied for fifth in the NCAA Women's College World Series a year ago, begin the new season listed No. 5 in the preseason poll. In 1998, Michigan started the year at No. 4 and in 1997 the Wolverines were listed No. 5. Michigan opened their 1996 season ranked seventh in the College Sports magazine preseason ranking.

Senior Duo Shares Team Captain Role
A pair of seniors -- first baseman Traci Conrad and outfielder Tammy Mika -- will serve as co-captains for the 1999 Wolverines as selected by vote of their teammates. Both named to GTE Academic All-America teams last season, Conrad and Mika also earned All-Big Ten and All-Great Lakes Region awards over the past two seasons.

Milestone Wins Ahead for Hutchins
Three coaching victory milestones could be reached in the 1999 season by 15th-year Michiga n head coach Carol Hutchins. She needs 12 wins for her 600th collegiate career victory and 35 wins for her 600th victory at Michigan. With Big Ten win number four, Hutchins will record her 250th conference victory. When Hutchins reaches the 600-win mark, she will move into an elite group in NCAA all-division softball coaching history. Hutchins (588 wins) is racing Southern Illinois' head coach Kay Brechtelsbauer (593 wins) and Landers (S.C.) head coach Doug Spears (580) to become the 25th coach to compile 600 career victories.

Hutchins begins the 1999 season ranked among the best in four NCAA Division I coaching lists. Among active coaches, Hutchins is No. 15 in win percentage (.691) and No. 17 in victories (588). In all-time Division I coaches, she is No. 16 in percentage and No. 20 in victories.

Conrad Poised for NCAA Record Run
Senior first baseman Traci Conrad is poised to make a run at a pair of NCAA Division I career records during her final campaign. Conrad, who holds the Michigan career runs record with 166, is 10 runs shy of moving into the No. 20 position on the NCAA career runs list. With 258 hits, Conrad is 34 hits short of the 20th spot in NCAA career hits.

U-M Among 1998 Attendance Leaders
The highly-successful 1998 Michigan softball team added another feather to its cap finishing among the top 10 NCAA Division I teams in attendance. The Wolverines averaged 430 fans at its 16 home dates, totaling 9,044. Both average and total attendance figures ranked seventh in the final 1998 figures. Michigan is the highest ranked northern school in the softball attendance categories. An Alumni Field record 1,452 fans attended the May 16 NCAA Region 3 championship game where Michigan defeated DePaul, 3-0.

Two Hundred Wolverine Games
Michigan seniors Traci Conrad and Catherine Davie will each be looking to record their 200th Michigan game played during the first month of the season. Conrad has played in 198 games, earning starts in 197. Davie has played in 180 games with starting assignments in 166. Classmate Tammy Mika begins her last season with 153 games played.

1998 Grad Listed in NCAA Records
When Sara Griffin (Simi Valley, Calif./Simi Valley HS) graduated from the Michigan softball program in 1998, she did more than work herself to the top of numerous Wolverine career and season pitching and offensive record lists. Now an assistant coach at Arizona State, Griffin's name appears in several NCAA Division I season and career pitching records.

Among Division I season pitching records, Griffin is No. 12 in winning percentage (.921, 1998) and tied at No. 15 in wins (35, 1998 & 1996). In the Division I career pitching records, she ranks No. 6 in winning percentage (.848) and No. 9 in victories (106). Griffin is also among the all-time best pitchers in NCAA history, holding the No. 13 place in career wins and No. 16 spot in winning percentage among pitchers at all divisions.

Maize 'n Blue Diamond Gem
-- From the 1998 NCAA Division I final statistics: Traci Conrad, No. 40 batting (.410); Melissa Gentile, No. 44 batting (.409), No. 14 home runs (0.22/game), No. 20 RBI (0.98/game), No. 12 slugging percentage (.768); Sara Griffin, No. 20 ERA (0.97), No. 3 wins (35); Michigan, No. 2 win percentage (.889), No. 12 batting (.325), No. 23 fielding (.965), No. 19 scoring (5.29), No. 29 home rune (0.43/game), No. 16 slugging percentage (.440), No. 25 doubles 1.40/game).

Michigan Softball 1999 Quick Facts

1998 FINAL RECORDS
Overall: 56-7 (.889)
Home: 20-1 / Away: 18-1 / Neutral: 18-5
Big Ten: 22-1 (.957), 1st
NCAA National Finish: Fifth (tie)
USA Today/NFCA National Rank: No. 6
NCAA Tournament Seed: No. 3

HEAD COACH
Carol Hutchins (Michigan State, 1979)
Head Coach Records --
All (16th year): 588-263-1, .691
U-M (15th year): 565-252-1, .691
Big Ten (15th year): 246-103, .705

1999 CAPTAINS
Traci Conrad (Sr., 1B, Frankfort, Ill.)
Tammy Mika (Sr., CF, Brighton, Mich.)

MICHIGAN RECORDS
All-Time: 728-358-1, .670 (1978 - present / 21 yrs.)
Alumni Field: 234-84, .736 (1982-present /17 yrs.)

MEDIA RELATIONS
Office: 734-763-4423; FAX: 734-647-1188
Softball Contacts: Amy Carlton (E: amotc@umich.edu);
    Tom Wywrot (E: twywrot@umich.edu)

Last updated: Thursday, 11-Feb-1999 01:17:42 EST