BY BEN MAKI OF THE ODESSA AMERICAN

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Coming off consecutive appearances in the NJCAA Division I Fast Pitch National Championship Tournament, expectations again are high for Odessa College's softball team.

The team's 2010 appearance in the tournament was the fourth in six years and featured a sophomore-heavy roster.

This year, it's just the opposite, with six sophomores returning and 13 freshmen entering the program.

In the circle, head coach Joel Prickett has spent the last two seasons relying primarily on Katelyn Stanley. But he added depth midway through the 2010 season when Caitlyn Crain returned from injuries suffered during the Thanksgiving break.

Prickett hopes his depth this season at pitcher will cut the load of his No. 1 starter, with freshmen Elita Sendejo of Seminole and Delia Saucedo of San Bernadino, Calif., expected to throw significant innings.

Crain returns this season not 100 percent healthy, but close to it after having surgery in the offseason to clean up the elbow in her non-throwing arm.

"Last year, I definitely still had confidence, but this year I have more because it's always better to be healthy," she said.

In 18 games last year, Crain threw 107 innings, finishing with a 12-5 record a 1.70 ERA, a .222 batting average against and 114 strikeouts.

Sendejo and Saucedo will be competing for the No. 2 spot, with Saucedo having the edge right now after a strong fall.

"(Saucedo) pitched against some pretty good teams," Prickett said. "She gets the ball on the ground. You play defense behind her, you have a chance to beat anybody."

Sendejo didn't fare as well in the fall, but Prickett said she's rebounding nicely as the season opens with a doubleheader against Temple College at 11 a.m. Saturday at Wrangler Field.

"She'll give us a good left-handed arm," he said. "She was making a lot of adjustments over the fall, which as you do that, you're always going to have your ups and your downs."

Crain said the experience returning will help the freshmen adjust and will put the Lady Wranglers in position to be contenders for a return trip to St. George, Utah, for the national tournament.

"The sophomores that came back know what it takes," Crain said. "The freshmen are good at taking what we say and taking it to heart and backing us up. We know what it takes. We just have to get them to believe they have what it takes."

Prickett doesn't just leave it up to his veterans to get that point across.

He's been to four national tournaments as head coach for the Lady Wranglers.

"They made it as if they were hoping to go very far, and we have to be pushed really hard to make us better," Saucedo said. "He knows how good we can be, so he expects a lot, but I don't think it's too much."

Second base and catcher are two positions that will need to be filled by freshmen, especially catcher with Erin Gilliland moving on to play at Abilene Christian University.

"The thing we'll miss more than anything this year is Gilly, our catcher, handling our pitchers," Prickett said. "It's one of those things you don't realize until it's gone. We've been real fortunate, honestly, to have some pretty good receiving catchers and local talent over the years with Brittany Allison (of Odessa High) back in the day to Gilliland from Midland Lee.

"We've got two really good catchers here now. It's just a matter of getting mature and growing up. It's promising."