JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - North Florida softball opens its 2018 slate in the Friends of Jaclyn Invitational beginning on Friday, Feb. 9. The Ospreys play five games in three days at UCF.
 

TOURNAMENT CENTRAL

Opponent	Illinois	Providence	Louisville	Butler	South Alabama
Date - Time	Friday – 2:30 p.m.	Friday – 5:30 p.m.	Saturday – 11:00 a.m.	Saturday – 1:30 p.m.	Sunday – 12:00 p.m.
Series	First Meeting	UNF leads 2-1	UNF leads 2-0	First Meeting	First Meeting

 
QUICK HITS

• Entering her 10th year at North Florida, head coach Marcie Higgs has consistently led the Ospreys to 20-win seasons in every year.
• Junior Navia Penrod earned the ASUN Preseason Player of the Year honor after an exciting sophomore campaign. Penrod ranked 30th in the nation batting .422 and finished sixth in the country with 87 hits.
• Sophomore Kayla McGory was the 2017 ASUN Defensive Player of the Year as a freshman and earned a spot on the ASUN All-Freshman Team. She ranked third in the league for RBIs at 47 and batted .362 which was second on the team.
• Junior Dominica Cocuzza finished last season with a .352 average and ranked 30th in the country and third in the ASUN with 16 doubles. 
• UNF returned nine from the 2017 squad that posted a 31-27 record. The Ospreys add five transfers and three freshman to round out the roster.
• Last season, North Florida ranked second in the ASUN with 82 doubles and batting average at .295.

 
OPPONENT NOTES
Illinois

• The Fighting Illini return six starters and 19 letterwinners after they finished with a 39-20 record and finished fourth in the Big Ten. Illinois advanced to the NCAA Lexington Regional final.
• Senior Annie Fleming is Illinois' top hitter from last season as she hit .347 with six home runs and 36 RBIs. Junior Taylor Edwards returns as the Illini's top pitcher with a 14-2 record and a 2.67 ERA
• Illinois is receiving votes in both the USA Today/NFCA Coaches and ESPN.com/USA Softball preseason polls.

Providence

• The Friars enter the 2018 campaign after they finished with a 23-25 record last season.
• Providence is picked seventh in the 2018 Big East Preseason Coaches' Poll.
• Emma Lee led the Friars last season hitting at a .361 clip, while Julianne Rurka hit .328.

Louisville

• After posting a 31-19 mark and finishing as runner-up in the ACC, the Cardinals are returning six starters and 11 letterwinners.
• Nicole Pufahl is Louisville's top returning hitter as she hit .366 with a team-high eight home runs and 43 RBIs. Pufahl was also selected as All-ACC second team following last season.
• The Cards are picked to finish fourth in the ACC Preseason Poll.

Butler

• Butler finished 23-29 last season and are picked third in the 2018 Big East Preseason Softball Coaches Poll.
• Jenna Foreman returns as the Bulldogs top offensive performer as she hit .373 with a team-high 30 stolen bases last year. Foreman was also named to the All-Big East Second team last season.

South Alabama

• The Jaguars return four starters and 13 letterwinners after they compiled a 35-20 record last year and finished fourth in the Sun Belt.
• Kaleigh Todd is the Jags top returning hitter with a .398 average. Devin Brown looks to continue her strong play in the circle coming off of a 19-7 year with a 1.51 ERA and 194 strikeouts.
• South Alabama was picked fourth in the Sun Belt preseason poll.

 
LOOKING AHEAD
After the opening weekend, North Florida comes back home to host the UNF Invite beginning on Friday, Feb. 16. UNF takes on Providence at 3:30 p.m. for the home opener before playing South Dakota State at 6 p.m.