By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
The Washburn University softball team will open its 55th season on Friday, playing five games over three days in the Mardi Gras Classic in Youngsville, La.
Junior pitcher Sadie Walker is a top returner for Washburn University's softball team, winning 20 games last season for the 37-17 Ichabods. [File photo/TSN]
Friday's Jan. 31 start date is the earliest the Ichabods have started a season since Feb. 1, 2019.
"We're all ready,'' said senior first baseman Jaden LaBarge. "We're all antsy and ready to go. We're all excited and a little nervous, but it's a good nervous and we're ready to get at it.''
Ichabod coach Brenda Holaday agreed.
"From a coach's standpoint I think our kids are prepared and ready to go,'' Holaday said. "We have a lot of room to grow. We have a lot of new players and we're at that point where I think we've grown as much as we can in practice and now we need to go play and be able to kind of re-access and also be in live action and play at the speed of the game to grow.''
Washburn is coming off its sixth NCAA appearance in program history last season, finishing the year with a 37-17 record.
The Washburn Ichabods secured their 19th season with at least 30 wins last season and their fourth under Holaday.
Hitting the 30-win mark for the third straight season is the longest streak since the Ichabods won at least 30 games in six straight seasons from 2002-07.
The Ichabods graduated five seniors off last year's team, including former All-Americans and program record-setters Jaycee Ginter and Marrit Mead, but Washburn returns a strong nucleus, including five seniors. The WU roster also includes six juniors, one sophomore and nine freshmen.
"I think we have a very good chance of getting very far with this team,'' LaBarge said. "We're already very well inter-connected and get along very well and are very close and family, so I think we have a good chance.''
Holaday is in her ninth season as the Ichabod softball head coach, recording a 252-149 overall record, going 113-59 in MIAA contests and leading the Ichabods to two MIAA regular-season titles (2018, 2022) and three NCAA Central Regionals (2018, 2022, 2024). Holaday trails Lisa Carey as Washburn's all-time winningest coach by four victories (256).
Junior pitcher Sadie Walker was 28th in the nation in wins and led the MIAA with 20 victories last season. Walker was 20th in games started (29) and 19th in shutouts (7) and 43rd in earned run average at 1.66.
LaBarge has appeared in 154 games and made 132 starts, recording 112 hits with 27 doubles and 14 home runs. LaBarge has driven in 86 runs while scoring 69 runs.
Silver Lake product Ellington Hogle has made 82 starts while playing in 127 career games as an Ichabod. Hogle has 70 hits with 42 runs scored and is a career .285 hitter.
Kaylee Wagner has made 85 starts and played in 125 games, collecting 60 hits and scoring 29 runs with four home runs and 48 RBI while Alexis Tanguma was an honorable mention All-MIAA selection at second base last season after batting .361 with 44 hits, seven doubles and 22 RBI and starting 38 of 44 games and Madi Moore was an MIAA Gold Glover winner as a catcher as a freshman, playing 43 games with 36 starts.
Mariah Wheeler started 37 of 44 games last season, recording a .323 batting average and collecting 30 hits with eight doubles, a pair of home runs and 17 RBI. Danielle Schlader has made 37 starts and played in 72 games, scoring seven runs with 36 hits and nine doubles while driving in 26 runs as an Ichabod while Erin Boles has made 59 starts in 85 appearances, collecting 51 hits with 26 runs scored and a .288 batting average.
The Ichabods will face Texas A&M-Kingsville, Alabama-Huntsville, Miles, Mississippi College and Southern Arkansas
Washburn will continue the 2025 season next week with five games over three days at the Alvy Memorial Classic in Bentonville, Arkansas.
