If the worst thing Riverland Community College softball coach Lisa Quednow-Bickler has to deal with is a player wanting to hit 4-for-4 instead of 3-for-4, then the Lady Blue Devils should not have any problems repeating as division champions.

Riverland returns six sophomores from a two-time defending Minnesota Community College Conference South Division squad, but all six expect nothing but perfection after experiencing heartbreak at the end of the 2002 campaign.

Rival Rochester Community and Technical College knocked the top-seeded Blue Devils out of the Region XIII Tournament held last May in Austin, preventing the program's much-anticipated trip to the National Junior College World Series of Softball.

Riverland will host the regional tournament again this year, but a 4-5 start to the new season has turned an eager club into an anxious one.

"The sophomores had so much success last year, but this team has a completely different make-up," said fourth-year coach Lisa Quednow-Bickler. "They just have to let it come. We've got to get the team mentality right now, we just have a different chemistry than we had last year.

"We've set goals but obviously we have to learn how to get them. Definitely my sophomores want to win the conference, and more importantly they definitely want to get to the national tournament, and I think we're right there."

The Blue Devils lost a trio of All-Conference sophomores in Sherry Hanson, Missy Avery and Tammy May, who had a natural knack for leadership. A core group of sophomores return from last year's 19-9 team that successfully defended the South Division crown and finished second in the MCCC State Tournament.

"I have very good leadership this year, but it's a different team and it's a new year," Quednow-Bickler said. "We have freshmen in leadership positions and they'll have to step it up, and they will. They just don't understand the talent that they have."

Shades of green

The starting roster will feature at least four freshmen every time the Blue Devils take the field, including a first-year collegiate catcher for every game.

Marissa Kelsey (Madelia-Truman) split time in the pitching circle with Hanson last season, and freshman Abbey Bergstrom, an All-State honorable mention pick from Blooming Prairie, moves into the No. 2 spot to share this year's innings. Lyle/Pacelli graduate Susie Rayman will also provide the Blue Devils with crucial innings.

"Our pitching key is that we can't walk people," Quednow-Bickler said. "If we score two or three runs, we have the pitching that can bear down and pitch."

The three-person staff will deal to one of two freshmen. Sarah Moore and Molly Wasomen will start at catcher, with sophomore center fielder Melanie Gabrielson, an Austin graduate, occasionally providing relief behind the plate.

Moore, from St. Paul Harding, has been one of the team's top hitters through the first nine games of the season. She will also play first base or designated hitter when not serving as the primary backstop.

"Sarah has probably played more softball than most of our kids combined," Quednow-Bickler said. "She's just a softball kid and she can make good contact."

Wasomen, an Alden-Conger native, will gain increased playing time as she adjusts to the speed of the collegiate game. Gabrielson caught a pair of games during Riverland's spring training trip to Orlando, Fla., in which the Devils went 4-3.

"It will be a really good season," Quednow-Bickler said. "I'd rather take a few lumps at the beginning instead of at the end."

Team has versatility

Both Bergstrom and Rayman will likely be in the starting lineup for every game. Bergstrom played some outfield for the Austin Legion softball team last summer, and Rayman played primarily third base during her senior season at L/P.

"Abbey only knows success, and I think Susie's going to be one of the big keys to the team," Quednow-Bickler said. "She's one of the more versatile players we have. And you could put Abbey anywhere."

Rayman and incumbent third baseman Erin Evans, also from Lyle/Pacelli, will give the team different looks at the hot corner. Freshman Hannah Tvedt (Byron) takes over at shortstop with Owatonna sophomore Beth Harsma to her left at second base.

Offensive production will set apart the group of first basemen. Sophomore Steph Vollbrecht (Waterville-Elysian-Morristown) has the early advantage, with Rayman, Evans and Moore also in the mix. Sophomore outfielder Katie Berg, a Hayfield native, may also see time at first.

Berg and Gabrielson -- the team captains along with Evans -- make up two-thirds of the starting outfield. Jenny Schnaufer, Amber Nash and Bergstrom will share time in right. Schnaufer is a sophomore transfer from Winona State but is playing softball collegiately for the first time. The Lanesboro native is one of the team's top baserunners in the early going.

"I've got speed, speed and a little more speed," Quednow-Bickler said. "And then I have some more speed on the bench. We're going to be pretty fast on the bases."

Nash is a freshman from Owatonna with natural instincts as an outfielder. Waseca freshman Heidi Hovland may also gain some gametime in the outfield.

"This is the most diverse team I think I've ever had,"

Quednow-Bickler said. "We have some people that are pretty versatile, but we just need to get set on a concrete infield. We'd just like to get going to see how we'll do."

Play ball

Riverland had a Friday doubleheader at North Iowa Area Community College in Mason City postponed to Tuesday at 4 p.m. The games will be played at Mason City Newman Catholic High School.

The Blue Devils are scheduled to open their defense of the South Division title on Friday, April 4, at home against Central Lakes. The Raiders are one of Quednow-Bickler's favorites to give chase at the league championship, along with Rochester and Ridgewater. Riverland hosts all three top contenders within the first week of the league opener.

"The conference is going to be very good this year," Quednow-Bickler said. "I'm interested to see how we do. One of the biggest things is to play consistently together, and I think the team thing is what we really need to emphasize right now.

"The national tournament is exciting to the six sophomores that know they can do it, and I think they would like to win (regions) here."

Itasca from the North Division is ranked fifth in the NJCAA Division III preseason poll, while Vermilion (north) and Ridgewater (south) also received votes. The state tournament is hosted again this year by Northland College in Thief River Falls on May 17-18 and all 14 MCCC teams automatically qualify.

The Region XIII Tournament is May 9-11, with the NJCAA National Tournament May 14-16 in Joliet, Ill.

Call Ross Thede at 434-2234 or e-mail him at :mailto:sports@austindailyherald.com.