@OspreySB Opens 2016 Season with Tiger Classic in Baton Rouge

BATON ROUGE, La. – The North Florida Softball team starts their 2016 campaign in Baton Rouge, La., this weekend at the Tiger Classic, hosted by LSU at Tiger Park.

The Ospreys will play four teams in three days, with their season opener against Connecticut at 3:30 p.m, followed by a matchup with the third-ranked Tigers at 8:00 p.m.

Saturday's schedule includes a doubleheader scheduled for 1 p.m. against Ohio State, following that the Ospreys will face Pacific at a 3:30 p.m. scheduled start.

Sunday's lone game will be another matchup with Connecticut, scheduled for 10 a.m.

Position Preview – Pitchers
The Ospreys feature several new faces in the bullpen this year, with senior Janet Snipe as the lone returner in the circle. Other pitchers include transfers Logan Green and Katie Beth Gordon, plus freshman Meghan Jeffrey.

Infield
The Ospreys look to replace two key members of their infield with Kelly Wilson and Abby Tewey graduating. Key returners are seniors Katie Mandigo and Stacy McClelland. McClelland returns as a force in the Ospreys lineup, earning A-Sun Preseason Player of the Year. McClelland lead the bats last year with a team high 13 home runs and 47 RBIs, plus a team-leading .399 batting average, .489 on-base percentage and a .706 slugging percentage.

Outfield
The outfield features two seniors in Lexi Taylor and Shelby Duncan. Duncan earned Preseason All-Conference Honors, leading the A-Sun in hits and doubles in 2015.

Catchers
Sophomore Alex Arciola looks to follow up her stellar 2015 season behind the plate in her second season with the program. The left-handed Arciola lead the A-Sun in caught-stealing percentage last season (.426). Also joining the squad is junior transfer Jen Valle from St. John's River State College.

Overall, the Ospreys feature eight newcomers on their 18-man roster, as well as two newcomer coachers in Jeff Conrad and Andrea Browning.

Head Coach Marcie Hickey enters her eighth season with the team, earning her 200^th win at North Florida last season and holding an overall record at North Florida of 200-180. Hickey holds an overall record of 293-375.

The late game against LSU on Friday will be streamed live on SEC Network+, while the rest of the Ospreys games at the Tiger Classic will have live stats available.

For the latest news and updates, follow @OspreySB on Twitter.

@OspreySB Opens 2016 Season with Tiger Classic in Baton Rouge

Players Mentioned

Alex Arciola

Shelby Duncan

Katie Beth Gordon

Logan Green

Meghan Jeffrey

Katie Mandigo

Stacy McClelland

Janet Snipe

Lexi Taylor

Abby Tewey

Jen Valle

Kelly Wilson

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