| Lori Cook |
FRISCO ? The UTSA softball team has been picked to finish third in the Southland Conference Preseason Polls by the league’s head coaches and sports information directors, the conference office announced Thursday. Junior Rudi Cantu has been named to the preseason first team at second base, while senior outfielder Leanne Risberg and sophomore pitcher/designated player Dany? Holmes are second-team selections.
The Roadrunners picked up one first-place vote and tallied 90 points in the coaches’ poll for third behind preseason favorite and defending SLC Tournament Champion Stephen F. Austin and defending regular season champ Texas State. UTSA garnered a pair of first-place votes and 84 total points in the SIDs’ poll for third behind SFA and Texas State.
UT Arlington was fourth in the coaches’ poll, followed by Sam Houston State, McNeese State and Nicholls. Texas A&M-Corpus Christi and Southeastern Louisiana tied for eighth, while Northwestern State and Central Arkansas tied for 10th.
Sam Houston State was fourth by the SIDs, followed by UT Arlington, McNeese State, Nicholls, Southeastern Louisiana, Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, Central Arkansas and Northwestern State.
| Rudi Cantu |
| Leeanne Risberg |
| Dany? Holmes |
Cantu, one of the league’s top leadoff hitters, was a first-team choice at second base last season after hitting .316 with 56 hits, 38 runs, four doubles, three triples and 16 RBIs to go along with 11 stolen bases and a .346 on-base percentage. In SLC play, the Alvin native batted .318 with 34 hits, 27 runs, two doubles, three triples, four walks and 14 RBIs. Cantu was a third-team all-conference performer as a freshman in 2007.
Risberg was a third-team selection after batting .275 with 44 hits, 27 runs, seven doubles, six home runs, 22 RBIs and a .431 slugging percentage. The New Orleans native earned first-team honors in 2007 after posting a .317 batting average, 53 hits, 39 runs, 11 two-baggers, 15 round-trippers, 42 RBIs and a .653 slugging percentage. She ranks 11th all-time at UTSA with 25 career home runs, needing just one long ball to join the top 10.
Holmes became the first Roadrunners to ever earn all-conference honors at pitcher (second team) and designated player (third team) in the same season following her freshman campaign in 2008. The Sugar Land native led the team with a 2.23 ERA, went 9-6 in 22 appearances (15 starts) and posted three shutouts, 78 strikeouts and a .252 opposing batting average in 100.1 innings last year in the circle. In league play, the left-hander registered an 8-1 record, 1.45 ERA, eight complete games, three shutouts, 58 strikeouts, 22 walks and an opposing .211 batting average. At the plate, Holmes batted .317 with 45 hits, five doubles, eight home runs, 33 RBIs, a .521 slugging percentage, a .452 on-base percentage and 34 walks (No. 2/UTSA single-season list).
Twenty of the 22 preseason roster positions are returning all-conference selections. Players who earned first- and second-team all-conference honors following the 2008 season automatically receive preseason honors. Third-team postseason selections move into vacated positions on the first and second preseason teams. The remaining spots are voted on by the league’s head coaches and sports information directors.
UTSA returns eight letterwinners from last year’s 25-25 squad that tied for second in the league with a 20-10 record. The Roadrunners open the season on Feb. 6-7 against Tulsa and 2008 NCAA Women’s College World Series runner-up Texas A&M at the Aggie Classic in College Station.