If there was one element conspicuously absent from last year's softball season, it was the metallic "ping" of bat and ball connecting. It certainly didn't happen much with number-one hurler Miya Warner '06 on the rubber; Warner collected 136 strikeouts over 118 innings and boasted a stingy 1.36 ERA and a 10-7 record. Unfortunately for the Jeffs, their own bats also failed to produce the desired sound effect-opponents held Amherst to a .199 batting average with 106 strikeouts over the 27-game season. The Jeffs, who compiled a 13-14 record, dropped five games by one or two runs, including a heartbreaking 1-0 loss at the hands of the Williams College Ephs on April 24. Indeed, in the last four games of the season, Amherst only put up two runs.

This year, however, the Jeffs plan to do things differently. The stingy defense will remain, as the bulk of the infield and outfield returns, but Amherst is approaching offense with an entirely new perspective. "Our team will hit better this year because we've made hitting our priority," said senior co-captain outfielder Greta Anderson. "We usually get most of our hitting practice off of the pitching machine in the cage, but this year we've significantly increased the amount of live hitting we're doing in practice." The Jeffs are also focusing on run production. "Stranding people [on base] was a big problem for us last year," said junior outfielder Rachel Hoerger. To combat the 156 times that Jeff runners were left on base in 2004, Amherst is focusing on slapping and bunting and maintaining strength throughout the batting order. "We have been working on hitting and making good contact in practices a lot this preseason," said Head Coach Sue Everden, who added that the team has players who hit for power and others who make contact and produce runs.

Amherst's heaviest hitter, lefty first baseman Laura Trigiero '06, hit .326 last year-almost 50 points higher than anyone with over 50 at-bats-and led in most other major offensive categories. Trigiero batted .386 as a first-year and will almost certainly remain in one of the top four spots in the lineup. "She's a great hitter and will help lift our offense this season," said Anderson. Third baseman Caroline Polales '07 batted .271 in her rookie season with a .365 slugging percentage. Anderson was the only other returning player to bat over .200; she hit .309 in only 26 at-bats. The Jeffs will miss the bat of Gina Scribner '04, who earned Second Team All-NESCAC honors in her senior season while batting .268. Scribner was Amherst's undisputed offensive powerhouse as a first-year and a sophomore, but after skipping her junior season she did not return to full form, and only Amherst's senior trio will know what the team is really missing.

While offense remains a big question mark in 2005, the Jeffs certainly have an answer in Warner's right arm. She's not a flamethrower, but Warner's strengths lie in her ability to change speed and location with every pitch. Her arsenal has baffled NESCAC opponents consistently for the past two seasons; she earned First Team All-NESCAC honors as a first-year, while last season her 10 wins were good enough for the third-most in the league. "[Warner] works incredibly hard and gets results," said Anderson. If pitchers Hilary Little '07, who finished her rookie campaign with a 3-7 record and a respectable 3.03 ERA, and newcomer Samantha Miller '08 can combine for just five good innings in each doubleheader, it's safe to say that Warner will be able to do the rest.

Though the Jeffs return every position player but two, the most important move to their defense will be the return of Anderson to the outfield to man the grass alongside returning starters Hoerger and Liz Staunton '05. Anderson, who started in the outfield as a first-year and a sophomore, spent last season as far from the outfield as a player can get: She shouldered the catching duties despite limited experience behind the plate. Though Anderson performed admirably in what was an emergency situation, the presence of first-year catchers Elizabeth Neckes and Kelly King should cut down on the 39 bases (on 43 attempts) opponents stole from Amherst last season, while the presence of Anderson in the outfield will increase the Jeffs' defensive reliability. The speedy duo of Hoerger and Staunton will continue to cover the ground ably; Hoerger's .979 fielding percentage led all starters last year, and Staunton stepped up to perform solidly in her first year as a consistent on-field presence. The rookie catchers are also likely to see time in the outfield according to Everden.

The Jeffs return the left side of their infield in the form of Polales at the hot corner and Annalise Rodli '07 at shortstop. Trigeiro will man the first base line, while newcomer Ralina Shaw '08E will see time at second base with Warner also filling in when she is not pitching.

Amherst has already participated in a series of preseason indoor scrimmages against Keene State University to prepare for the team's upcoming Spring Break trip to Fort Myers, Fla. "Each week we've gotten progressively better," said Hoerger. "And it's shown in each of our scrimmages." The Jeffs' regular season schedule starts on March 13 with a doubleheader in Fort Myers against fellow cold-weather foes Lesley College and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. However, the most important games in the team's schedule do not take place until late April.

Middlebury and Williams Colleges shared top billing in the NESCAC West last season; Amherst first travels to Vermont on April 23 and arrives in Williamstown a week later for a pair of key doubleheaders.

"Goals for the season [are to] finish first or second in the West division of [the] NESCAC so that we can compete in the NESCAC tourney for a shot at the NCAAs," said Everden. Amherst will probably need to win at least two of the four Middlebury and Williams games to do so.

The Jeffs, however, remain wary of looking too far ahead. "We're just looking to continue to play solid defense, get our bats going and come home from Florida with a winning record," said Warner.