The wait is over for the Wildcats.
The Weber State University women’s softball team gets its new campaign underway on Friday when the Wildcats take on No. 22 Notre Dame at 10 a.m. MT, at the 49er Softball Complex.
The matchup with the Irish will be the first of five scheduled opening weekend games for the Wildcats at the Stacy Winsberg Memorial Tournament, co-hosted by Long Beach State and UCLA.
“We have worked hard and come together as a unit over the past few weeks,” said senior outfielder Mackenzi Corta, one of six seniors for the Wildcats this year. “The team is excited to start the season and ready to get on some dirt.”
Weber State takes on Long Beach State at 3 p.m. MT, on Friday to round out opening day.
On Saturday, the Wildcats will move to the UCLA campus in Los Angeles, where they’ll take on No. 8 UCLA in a twin bill at Easton Stadium, with the first game set for 12:30 p.m. MT, and the second at 3 p.m. The Wildcats will wrap up the three-day tournament on Sunday at 12:30 p.m., against San Diego State at Easton Stadium.
Live stats will be available for all five games via StatBroadcast, and a live audio stream will be available for the two matches with the Bruins through the UCLA website.
Weber State is the two-time defending Big Sky Conference champion, having played in back-to-back NCAA Regionals, and is coming off a 37-19 overall season in 2016. The Wildcats were selected to finish first in the league for a third-straight year in the Big Sky preseason coaches’ straw poll.
Weber State returns seven full-time starters this year, including First Team All-Big Sky Conference right-hander Kirtlyn Bohling (19-9, 3.01 ERA) in the circle, two-time First Team All-Big Sky selection McKinley Brinkerhoff (.377, 58 hits, 35 runs scored) at second base and First Team All-Big Sky selection Sara Hingsberger (.320, 57 hits, 65 RBIs) in right field.
Also returning for the Wildcats is Second Team All-Big Sky selection JaeCie Wilson (.388, 54 hits, 43 runs scored) and Honorable Mention All-Big Sky selection Carley White (.266, 33 hits, 10 RBIs). In all, the Wildcats return 13 letter winners and welcome eight newcomers to the fold in 2017.
This weekend’s tournament is the first of six-straight weekends of tournament competition and seven-consecutive weekends of competition away from Wildcat Softball Complex. The stretch will include five trips to California and one each to Las Vegas, Nevada, and Boise, Idaho.
Justin Johnson is an Athletic Communications Assistant at Weber State University. For more information about Weber State University athletics, please visit: http://www.weberstatesports.com.