Lafayette softball will officially get the 2024 season underway this weekend, opening with the Tarleton State Whataburger Invitational in Stephenville, Texas. The Leopards play Mississippi Valley State on Friday at 10:30 a.m. ET before playing the hosts at 3 p.m. Three more games follow against Buffalo, Tarleton State and Idaho State on Saturday and Sunday.
 
The Tarleton State Tournament is the first of three tournaments to start the Leopards' 2024 campaign. Five-game events at Florida and North Carolina follow on successive weekends. The Leopards are slated to open at home on March 13 with a doubleheader vs. Le Moyne. The final in-season tournament comes at Maryland, where the Leopards will play four games.
 
Patriot League play opens March 23 with a three-game series vs. Bucknell. The regular season concludes at Holy Cross, before the Patriot League Tournament on May 9-11.
 
"Our pre-conference schedule is rigorous, but it is by design," said second-year head coach Karavin Dew. "It's going to make sure that we are competing day-in and day-out, so if we can do that we'll be ready for Patriot League play."
 
INFIELDERS
Offensively, four of the Leopards' top five hitters return to the lineup.
Sophomore Kylee Sweet was the team's top hitter in 2024, posting a .294 average in 45 games while hitting out of the No. 2 slot. She is expected to reprise her role at third base where she will be joined by freshman Katie Harrington and sophomore Kylene Gooch who also plays at second.  
 
Sophomore Megan Coyle is making the move from first base to shortstop. Coyle led the team in RBI and extra-base hits in 2023. She blasted seven home runs and plated 20 runs, tops in both categories, while hitting in the middle of the lineup. Fellow sophomore Grace Hausaman played in 30 games with 25 starts, primarily in the outfield, may also see time at short.
 
At second base, the Leopards are looking to fill the gap left by the graduation of Kaili Reitano, who started 70 games over the past two seasons. Sophomore Marisa Powell is expected to take over after playing in 34 games as a rookie, mostly in right field. She was second on the team in hitting in 2023, batting.263 average in the middle of the order. She will be joined at second by Hausaman and Harrington.
 
Coyle's move to shortstop opened up the competition for playing time at first base. Rookies Regan Dillon and Natalia LoCurto will challenge senior Kristen Brown for playing time. Brown played in 18 games with 16 starts in 2023, hitting for a .233 average.
 
CATCHERS
With the graduation of Academic All-Patriot League selection Grace Harvey, the Leopards will look to juniors Maggie Klug and Kaya Ciccone-Cozart, senior Bella Lowdermilk and Dillon to take over behind the plate.
 
Ciccone-Cozart played in 21 games with 17 starts a season ago. Klug, who transferred to Lafayette in the fall, was a starter as a freshman at Tennessee State in 2022 and then played 31 games at Chattanooga State Community College in 2023. Lowdermilk missed the 2023 due to injury. Dillon is expected to split time between catching and first base.
 
OUTFIELDERS
Senior Paige Sandidge, who started 37 games in 2023, is expected to hold down the starting spot in left field. Sandidge hit for a .235 average with four home runs and 12 RBI while contributing at a.409 clip with runners in scoring position. Classmate Bailey Langford, who played in 21 games last season with 16 starts, will also spend time in left along with rookie Sabina Lehnert.
 
Junior transfer Mary Grace O'Neill comes to Lafayette via Fordham University where she started 34 games over her first two seasons. Dew is expected to use her left-handed bat to hit ??? in the lineup. Sandidge may also see time in center along with Powell.
 
In right field, sophomore Olivia Catalina will likely get the nod on opening day. Catalina played in 16 games with six starts as a rookie, used mostly as a DH and pinch hitter. O'Neill and Powell will join the New Jersey native in right field.  
 
PITCHERS
Lafayette returns its entire pitching staff from last season. Seniors Jacqueline Cal and junior Morrigan Gardner each bring with them three wins from 2023. Cal appeared in 22 games with 12 starts over 91 innings. Gardiner struck out 72 and walked 31 as a sophomore and finished with a 3-4 record and a 3.26 ERA in conference play.
 
Senior Kailee Sawai started a team-best 15 games with 23 appearances overall in 2023 and is expected to figure in the weekend rotation. Freshman Parker Rowden will also compete for time in the circle. The all-state and all-region honoree out of Virginia struck out 117 in 114 innings while batting with a .386 average in her senior season.