Frank Forseth: Men’s BaseballWhat are the team’s goals for the season? What are your personal goals?
Our team’s goals are to play the best baseball we possibly can every pitch and to make the conference tournament.
My personal goals are to have a perfect record as a starting pitcher and to have an ERA of less than 1.00. I also want to have an on-base percentage of .400 or better.
Under the direction of a new coach, how have leadership roles changed or stayed the same?
Our leadership has taken a new direction, and our captains have more responsibility this year than in years past. We have say in our lineup from game to game, what our practice schedule will consist of, and also our pre-game routines. The captains are responsible to not only lead by example, but are also expected to take the opinions of others and construct those in ways to bring the whole team together to play as one. In years past we had captains, but the assignments then were not clearly defined and it rarely had any impact on the season. Overall I think our leadership has made us a much more structured program.
What influence have the new freshman players had on the program?
The freshmen this year have already made big contributions to our program: some on the mound, others in the field, and a few in the batter’s box. Let’s not forget to mention how they have quickly adapted to college baseball in their transition from high school to the college level. Leitner has helped us in more ways than I think more people outside of our program realize. He has brought us not only a solid couple starts this season, but he has also given us an opportunity to have a righty/lefty matchup in our doubleheader matchups during conference play. This allows for us to give our opponents a different look, one being a righty in game one … and then we can start Leitner in game two and it plays tricks on the opposing batters’ eyes seeing the pitch come from the other side of the mound. Eric Bohling has also stepped up to fill a void in the infield when we have certain players moving from position to position. We would be one infielder short without him, and he has done a great job at third base for us!
Would you rather dominate on the mound or have the game winning hit at the plate?
I would rather dominate on the mound, because if I do that then we won’t need a game winning hit because we will already be winning at the end of the game, Ha! Don’t get me wrong, I would love to hit a game winner or a walk off … but I enjoy frustrating the opposing team for the entire game rather than just in the last moments of the game.
Do you have any superstitions? If so, what are they?
The only superstition I have is when I’m pitching. After every inning when I come back to the dugout I have to put on my pullover fleece, take a drink of water, and then I sit on the bench and think about the next three hitters I have to face in the next inning … but only briefly because I get into what’s going on in the field once we start hitting
Jenna Reichel: Women’s Softball
How long have you played softball? What got you started in the sport?
I think I was probably around 5 when I first started playing softball, but at that time it was just good to be able to hit the ball off a tee and remember which way you had to run to get to first base. I don’t really remember what got me started in the sport. It was probably my dad. Mainly, I remember we had a hard time figuring out if I was left handed or right handed. I don’t think we ever really did because now I throw right handed but bat lefty.
How is the team chemistry this season?
I’ve actually been surprised by how good the team chemistry is this year. We went into the season with only five returners and everyone else was new, but we’ve really melded well into a team.
What is your favorite aspect of softball?
The sunflower seeds. No, I’d probably have to say that my favorite aspect of softball has always been defense. I really like the mental aspect involved and it just feels great to make a difficult defensive play.
If you could play any other position on the field, what would it be and why?
If I could play any other position I’d probably want to try pitching just because I’ve never done it. I think the pitcher really gets a different kind of experience because it’s such a one-on-one thing with the batter. It’d be a new kind of challenge.
What do you hope to accomplish this season?
I’d love to see us make it to the Midwest Conference Tournament this year. I think we definitely have the potential to get there.