Akron Softball Opens 2018 Season In Sunshine State At Stetson Lead-Off Classic

Friday, February 9

DeLand, FL

1:30 PM

University of Akron

University of Kansas

Photo by: Jonathan Platten

Akron Softball Opens 2018 Season In Sunshine State At Stetson Lead-Off Classic

February 08 | Softball

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Stetson Lead-Off Classic Game Notes

Stetson Lead Off-Classic
Feb. 9-11
DeLand, Fla. | Patricia Wilson Softball Field

Feb. 9 vs. Kansas | 1:30 p.m.
Feb. 9 at Stetson | 4:00 p.m.
Feb. 10 vs. Kansas | 1:30 p.m.
Feb. 10 at Stetson | 6:30 p.m.
Feb. 11 vs College of Charleston | Noon

Game Information
Live Stats: GoZips.com
Radio: GoZips.com (Kansas Games Only)
Watch: Hattervision (Stetson Games Only)

What's Ahead

The University of Akron softball team is scheduled for the 2018 season opener when the Zips step on the field and toss the first pitch of the new season from the sunshine state. Akron travels to DeLand, Fla. to take part in the Stetson Lead-Off Classic for the fourth time in as many seasons on Feb. 9-Feb. 11. Akron will take the field for the first time at 1:30 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 9 and are slated for five games on the weekend including a pair of contests against Kansas and Stetson, and a game against the College of Charleston.

Scouting The Jayhawks

Kansas enters the 2018 season after finishing the 2017 season with a 24-28 overall record and went 3-14 in the Big 12. The Jayhawks bring a balanced lineup into the first weekend of play with seven returning seniors and 10 newcomers. In the preseason Big 12 poll, Kansas was predicted to finish fifth by the league's head coaches.

Scouting The Hatters

The host of the Lead-Off Classic, Stetson, heads into the opening weekend of play after compiling a 26-21 record in 2017. The Hatters return a veteran lineup with 12 players returning from a season ago and seven newcomers made up of five freshmen and two transfers.

Scouting The Cougars

The College of Charleston looks to begin the 2018 season where they left of last year finishing 2017 with a 33-23 mark. After going 12-9 in the Colonial Athletic Association league play, the Cougars ended their season in the third round of the CAA tournament. CofC heads into the new year with a youthful roster fielding seven freshmen, seven sophomores, three juniors, and three seniors. Prior to the start of the 2018 season, the Cougars were predicted to finish third overall in the CAA.

Series History

The Zips and the Jayhawks are set to meet on the diamond for the fourth and fifth time in program history. Kansas currently leads the all-time series, 3-0, after Akron fell to Kansas twice in 2017 and in their first meeting in 1988.

Akron and Stetson have squared off seven times in each program's respective history, including five contests in the last three seasons. In those seven contests, Stetson owns the edge in the all-time series, 4-3, after splitting two games in 2017.

Since the first meeting between Akron and the College of Charleston in 1984, the Zips lead the all-time series against the Cougars, 6-4, in 10 contests.

2018 Zip Breakdown

Under the guidance of 12th-year head coach, Julie Jones, the Zips enter the 42nd season of competition in 2018 after ending the 2017 season in the Mid-American Conference tournament for the third straight year and a 27-30 overall record. In 2018, Akron returns eight letterwinners from a season ago and welcomes seven newcomers to the squad, including four transfers and three freshmen.

The senior class returns five experienced veterans for the 2018 season in seniors Caitlin Gambone (Canton, Ohio), Jenna Jones (Fulton, Ill.), Cassie Gillespie (Sylvannia, Ohio), Kooper Vertz (Dilsboro, Ind.), and junior Laura Lakins (Akron, Ohio). Jones is the Zips top offensive player returning from 2017 after posting a .256 average on 34 hits in 54 games and 49 starts. Gillespie and Gambone return as two of the top defenders on the squad posting .986 and .930 fielding percentage, respectively, while a posting a combined 259 putouts and 134 assists.

Along with the returners, Akron added youth to the roster with the four transfers and three freshmen to the unit.

Inside the circle, Vertz, and freshmen Mikayla Newland (Chillicothe, Ohio) and Kayla Kmett (San Clemente, Calif.) will highlight the 2018 pitching staff for the Zips. In Vertz's first season with Akron in 2017, the righty went 5-5 in 20 appearances and 10 starts while owning a 3.03 ERA in 64.2 innings.

Coach Jones named Gillespie and Lakins captains for the 2018 season.

Career Record Watch

Heading into the season, Caitlin Gambone is 46 game appearances, 158 at-bats, 61 assists, and five sacrifice hits away from joining the career all-time top-ten lists.

One Last Ride

Senior's Caitlin Gambone and Cassie Gillespie will begin their senior season in 2018 which will start their last season's in an Akron uniform. Combined in their three seasons, Gambone and Gillespie have appeared in 300 games and made 286 starts. The six other returning letterwinnwers have made a combined 203 appearances and made 130 starts.

Taking A Seat

Due to injury, sophomore starting pitcher, Lexie Handley, will miss the 2018 season. Handley will be missed in 2018 as she is the reigning Mid-American Conference Freshman Pitcher of the Year.

Head Coach Julie Jones

In her 12th season at Akron, head coach Julie Jones has mentored 19 All-MAC honorees, five NCAA All-Mideast Region selections, 33 Academic All-MAC student-athletes, eight Academic All-District selections, and two Academic All-Americans, the 2014 MAC Pitcher of the Year, the 2016 prestigious MAC Nan Harvey award winner, and the 2017 MAC Freshman Pitcher of the Year. Her complete is on page 7.

Akron Softball Adds Four to 2018-19 Class

The University of Akron softball team and head coach Julie Jones announced the commitment of four student-athletes to the program after signing their National Letters of Intent to continue their education and playing career at the University of Akron.

The Zips inked Morgan Cadmus (Tecumseh/Tecumseh, Mich.), Allison Cummins (Lakota West/Liberty Township, Ohio), Camryn Michallas (Huntington/Huntington, W Va.), and Alexandria Petrof (Ligonier Valley/Ligonier, Pa.) to the 2018-19 class.

Cadmus, a third baseman, owns a career .514 batting average in her first three seasons at Tecumseh High School. In her career, Cadmus recorded 151 hits, including 40 doubles, 11 triples, and 16 home runs, while driving in 109 RBI. She posted a season-best .528 batting average as a freshman and a career-high 41 RBI and 22 steals. Cadmus collected a single-season best 54 hits as a junior and nine home runs. Cadmus is a four-sport athlete also earning All-Conference and All-Country accolades in volleyball, track, and gymnastics

Cummins, a catcher and shortstop from Liberty Township, Ohio, is a three-time sectional and district champion at Lakota West High School. As a junior, Cummins was named First-Team All-State, All-Area, All-City, and All-Greater Miami Conference. Cummins posted a .488 batting average, knocked out 40 base hits with 18 extra base hits, and drove in 43 runs. In her three-year career, Cummins set the single-season record for home runs (10), RBI (43), runs scored (39), and walks (23), while also broke career records in doubles (39), extra-base hits (65), RBI (114), and runs scored (95).

Michallas, a shortstop from Huntington, West Virginia, is a First-Team All-State honoree, and two-time First-Team All-Mountain State Athletic Conference. In her three-year career, Michallas has posted a .509 batting average, while recording 168 hits, 29 doubles, 11 triples, 12 home runs, and 98 runs batted in. Michallas was featured in the FloSoftball top-100 recruits for the class of 2018.

Petrof, a pitcher and second baseman from Ligonier, Pa., is a three-year varsity letterwinner at Ligonier Valley High School inside the Heritage Conference. Petrof is a two-time Heritage Conference champion and a state runner-up. At the plate, Petrof has posted a career .463 batting average on the strength of 88 hits, 18 doubles, four triples, five home runs and 40 RBI. Inside the circle, Petrof has dominated, owning a 1.47 earned run average, while striking out 460 batters in over 300 innings pitched. Petrof had a career-best year as a sophomore on the rubber recording an 18-4 record with a 1.43 ERA and 193 K's. In her time with the program, Petrof has helped lead Ligonier Valley to a 52-14 (.788) record.

A Look Back at 2017

The Akron Zips, under the guidance of 11th-year head coach Julie Jones, concluded the 2017 season at 27-30 overall and finished MAC play at 12-12 (4th in the East) after going 1-2 in their fourth consecutive Mid-American Conference Championship appearance. The Zips return 10 letterwinners, including four starters. UA welcomes four freshmen.

After 57 contests, junior OF Ashley Sims (Brooksville, Fla.) was the Zips' top hitter, batting .374 with 65 hits, 35 runs, and a MAC-best and season record 46 stolen bases. Senior OF Savannah Fruin (Delray Beach, Fla.) followed at .321 with a team-best 48 RBI, 51 hits, 12 doubles, a triple, and 12 home runs.

In the circle, freshman lefty Lexie Handley (Mogadore, Ohio), the 2017 MAC Freshman of the Year, had a 2.45 ERA. She finished at 20-17 overall, throwing a MAC-high 226.0 innings with 183 strikeouts and season-record 92 walks.

Junior Kooper Vertz (Dilsboro, Ind.) went 5-5 overall with a 3.03 ERA. She pitched 64.2 innings with 29 strikeouts and 30 walks.

Zips Live Radio Show

Every Thursday throughout the season from 7-8 p.m. ET, Akron head coaches can be heard on the weekly radio program Zips Live, presented by Lee Hyder and Associates. The show airs locally on 1350 AM (WARF) and originates from the Spaghetti Warehouse (510 S. Main Street). A free audio stream is available on www.SportsRadio1350.com.

Up Next

Akron travels to Montgomery, Ala. to take part in Black and Gold tournament hosted by Alabama State on Feb. 16-18. The Zips will play a pair of games on Friday (Feb. 16) and Saturday (Feb.17), before one final contest on Sunday (Feb. 18) to close out the weekend.