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Spring in Their StepSpring teams expect to be continuing well into play-off season
By John Werner and Brice Cherry
Photograph by Rod Aydelotte/Waco Tribune-Herald
SOFTBALL
COACH: Glenn Moore (ninth year at BU, 326-160; and twelfth overall, 465-202)
LAST YEAR: 23-22 (4-13, eighth in the Big 12)
 OUTLOOK:
After winning the Big 12 and advancing to the Women's College World
Series for the first time in 2007, Baylor fell to 23-22 last season.
But with the bulk of last year's lineup and highly touted freshman
pitcher Whitney Canion on board, the Lady Bears are expecting a return
to form.
TOP RETURNEES:
Brette Reagan, sr., third base (pictured); Nicole Wesley, jr.,
outfield; Tiffany Wesley, jr., outfield; Courtney Oberg, jr., catcher;
KJ Freeland, so., infield; Alex Colyer, sr., second base; Meagan
Weldon, so., infield; Jenny Isham, sr., pitcher; Shaina Brock, so.,
pitcher; Brittany Turner, sr., pitcher.
TOP NEWCOMERS:
Whitney Canion, fr., pitcher; Bree Hanafin, fr., utility; Megan Turk,
fr., utility; Kayce Walker, fr., outfield; Sydney Wilson, fr., infield;
Kalee Young, fr., catcher.
STRENGTHS:
The Lady Bears are eager to put 2008 behind them after finishing eighth
in the Big 12 at 4-13. All-America third baseman Brette Reagan is back
after hitting a team-high ten homers with thirty-six RBIs. Twins Nicole
and Tiffany Wesley bring great speed to the lineup. Catcher Courtney
Oberg expects to bounce back after hitting .271 with no homers last
season. But the key will likely be the performance of freshman pitcher
Whitney Canion, who was the 2008 Texas High School Gatorade Player of
the Year for Aledo.
BASEBALL
COACH: Steve Smith (fifteenth season at Baylor)
LAST YEAR: 32-26 overall, 11-16 in the Big 12 (sixth in the conference)
OUTLOOK:
Baylor experienced some growing pains last year, but its failure to
reach the NCAA regionals should prove to be a one-year anomaly. Much of
the talent that Coach Steve Smith last year said had "the potential to
be the best team in Baylor history" remains intact.
TOP RETURNEES:
Kendal Volz, jr., right-handed pitcher; Aaron Miller, jr., outfielder;
Shaver Hansen, jr., infielder; Adam Hornung, sr., first base; Shawn
Tolleson, so., right-handed pitcher; Dustin Dickerson, jr., infielder;
Willie Kempf, jr., right-handed pitcher; Ben Booker, sr., outfielder;
Raynor Campbell, jr., infielder.
TOP NEWCOMERS:
Joey Hainsfurther, fr., infielder; Logan Verrett, fr., right-handed
pitcher; Josh Ludy, fr., catcher; Max Garner, fr., right-handed pitcher.
STRENGTHS:
The Bears boast a potent hitting lineup, with five players back who
drove in more than forty runs in 2008. Kendal Volz is a talented
fireballer who ranks sixth on Baseball America’s national list of major-league prospects.
MEN'S TENNIS
COACH: Matt Knoll (thirteenth year at BU, 289-90)
LAST YEAR: 25-9 (5-1, tie for first in Big 12)
OUTLOOK:
After advancing to the NCAA semifinals four straight years and winning
the 2004 national title, Baylor reached the quarterfinals last year,
where it lost to top-seeded Virginia. Led by number-one seed Denes
Lukacs, the Bears expect another berth at the national tournament.
TOP RETURNEES: Denes Lukacs, jr.; Dominik Mueller, jr.; Jordan Rux, so.; Atilla Bucko, jr.; David Galic, sr.
TOP NEWCOMERS: Marc Bruche, fr.; Jurica Grubisic, fr.; Julian Bley, fr.
STRENGTHS:
Baylor has been the dominant program in the Big 12 throughout the
decade, and there’s no reason why success shouldn't continue. Denes
Lukacs will be one of the top players in the nation after a great
sophomore year in which he reached the NCAA quarterfinals. He's
surrounded by top-notch returning players like Dominik Mueller, Atilla
Bucko, and David Galic. A strong freshman class includes Marc Bruche,
Jurica Grubisic, and Julian Bley.
WOMEN'S TENNIS
COACH: Joey Scrivano (seventh season at Baylor and tenth overall)
LAST YEAR: 32-3 (Big 12 champions and NCAA semifinalists)
OUTLOOK:
Even after graduating the most decorated player in school history in
Zuzana “ZZ” Zemenova, the pieces are in place for a run at a fifth
straight conference title. Four of the team’s top six singles players
from last year are back off a team that won a school-record thirty-two
matches.
TOP RETURNEES: Taylor Ormond, so.; Lenka Broosova, jr.; Jelena Stanivuk, so.; Karolina Filipiak, so.
TOP NEWCOMERS: Csilla Borsanyi, jr.-transfer; Kasia Siwosz, jr.-transfer.
STRENGTHS:
After going 52-5 last season, junior Lenka Broosova of Slovakia appears
poised to step into the number-one singles position left vacant by the
departure of Zemenova. Canadian Taylor Ormond was last year’s Big 12
Freshman of the Year and should make a big contribution.
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