2022 Northwestern State Lady Demons softball team

2022 Northwestern State Lady Demons softball
2022 Northwestern State Lady Demons softball
Conference	Southland Conference
Record	29–22 (10–8 Southland)
Head coach	Donald Pickett (14th season);
Assistant coach	Lexi Smith
Home stadium	Lady Demon Diamond

2022 Southland Conference softball standings
	Conf.				Overall
Team	W		L	PCT	W		L	PCT
McNeese State ‍†‍‡‍^y	15	–	3	.833	40	–	21	.656
Southeastern Louisiana ‍‍‍	14	–	4	.778	40	–	16	.714
Texas A&M–Corpus Christi ‍‍‍	11	–	7	.611	25	–	27	.481
‍‍‍	10	–	8	.556	29	–	22	.569
Incarnate Word ‍‍‍	5	–	13	.278	15	–	36	.294
Houston Baptist ‍‍‍	4	–	13	.235	19	–	29	.396
Nicholls ‍‍‍	4	–	14	.222	12	–	38	.240

† – Conference champion ‡ – Tournament champion y – Invited to the NCAA tournament As of June 5, 2022^[1] Rankings from NFCA/USA Today

The 2022 Northwestern State Lady Demons softball team represented Northwestern State University during the 2022 NCAA Division I softball season. The Lady Demons played their home games at Lady Demon Diamond and were led by fourteenth year head coach Donald Pickett. They were members of the Southland Conference.

Preseason

Southland Conference Coaches Poll

The Southland Conference Coaches Poll was released on February 4, 2022. Northwestern State was picked to finish second in the Southland Conference with 120 votes and 2 first place votes.^[2]

Predicted finish	Team	Votes (1st place)
Coaches poll
1	McNeese State	132 (12)
2	Northwestern State	120 (2)
3	Southeastern Louisiana	113
4	Houston Baptist	102
5	Incarnate Word	84
6	Texas A&M–Corpus Christi	82
7	Nicholls	81

Preseason All-Southland team

^[3]

First Team

Caitlyn Brockway (HBU, JR, 1st Base)
Cayla Jones (NSU, SR, 2nd Base)
Lindsey Rizzo (SELA, SR, 3rd Base)
Ashleigh Sgambelluri (TAMUCC, JR, Shortstop)
Chloe Gomez (MCNS, SO, Catcher)
Kaylee Lopez (MCNS, JR, Designated Player)
Jil Poullard (MCNS, SO, Outfielder)
Audrey Greely (SELA, SO, Outfielder)
Aeriyl Mass (SELA, SR, Outfielder)
Pal Egan (TAMUCC, JR, Outfielder)
Lyndie Swanson (HBU, R-FR, Pitcher)
Whitney Tate (MCNS, SO, Pitcher)
Jasie Roberts (HBU, R-FR, Utility)

Second Team

Haley Moore (TAMUCC, SO, 1st Base)
Shelby Echols (HBU, SO, 2nd Base)
Autumn Sydlik (HBU, JR, 3rd Base)
Keely DuBois (NSU, SO, Shortstop)
Bailey Krolczyk (SELA, SO, Catcher)
Lexi Johnson (SELA, SO, Designated Player)
Toni Perrin (MCNS, SR, Outfielder)
Cam Goodman (SELA, SO, Outfielder)
Alexandria Torres (TAMUCC, SO, Outfielder)
Ashley Vallejo (MCNS, SO, Pitcher)
Heather Zumo (SELA, SR, Pitcher)
Beatriz Lara (TAMUCC, JR, Pitcher)
Melise Gossen (NICH, JR, Utility)

National Softball Signing Day

^[4]^[5]

Player	Position	Hometown	Previous Team
Camryn Ford	Outfielder	Many, Louisiana	Many HS
Ryleigh Denton	Pitcher	Rotan, Texas	Rotan HS Tyler JC

Personnel

2022 Northwestern State Lady Demons softball team

Players

Coaches

#	Pos.	Name	Bats/throws	Height	Year	Home town
0	OF	Vivica Hernandez	L/L	5 ft 5 in (1.65 m)	Fr	Fort Worth, Texas
1	INF	Carson Zachary	R/R	5 ft 6 in (1.68 m)	Fr	Mount Pleasant, Texas
2	INF	Cayla Jones	L/R	5 ft 2 in (1.57 m)	Sr	Missouri City, Texas
4	INF	Maggie Black	R/R	5 ft 7 in (1.7 m)	Jr	Grapevine, Texas
6	OF	Makenzie Chaffin	L/R	5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)	So	Bossier City, Louisiana
7	RHP	Bronte Rhoden	R/R	5 ft 7 in (1.7 m)	Jr	Plano, Texas
9	OF	Laney Roos	L/L	5 ft 7 in (1.7 m)	So	Aubrey, Texas
10	RHP	Sage Hoover	R/R	5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)	Fr	Edgewood, Texas
11	RHP	Kenzie Seely	R/R	5 ft 5 in (1.65 m)	So	Whitney, Texas
12	INF	Taylor Williams	L/R	5 ft 3 in (1.6 m)	So	Tom Bean, Texas
13	C	Tristin Court	R/R	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)	So	Rockwall, Texas
14	INF	Keely DuBois	R/R	5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)	So	Robeline, Louisiana
15	RHP	Nana Vences	R/R	5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)	Fr	Marshall, Texas
17	INF	Kat Marshall	R/R	5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)	So	Brenham, Texas
18	RHP	Heather Zook	R/R	5 ft 4 in (1.63 m)	Fr	Diana, Texas
22	OF	Bailie Ragsdale	L/R	5 ft 5 in (1.65 m)	Fr	Lone Oak, Texas
23	OF	Nani Winger	R/R	5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)	Fr	Friendswood, Texas
24	RHP	Haley Parker	R/R	5 ft 11 in (1.8 m)	Fr	Fort Worth, Texas
27	C	Derika Castillo	R/R	5 ft 5 in (1.65 m)	Fr	Houston, Texas
28	RHP	Maggie Darr	R/R	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	Fr	Missouri City, Texas
33	C	Lexie Roos	R/R	5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)	So	Aubrey, Texas
42	C	Alexis Perry	R/R	5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)	Jr	Wylie, Texas
44	OF	Casey Irvin	R/R	5 ft 6 in (1.68 m)	Jr	Houston, Texas

Head coach

Donald Pickett (UT Chattanooga)

Assistant coach(es)

Lexi Smith (Texas A&M)

Legend

(C) Team captain
(S) Suspended
(I) Ineligible

Injured
Current redshirt

Roster
Last update: 27 June 2022

Schedule and results

Legend
	Northwestern State win
	Northwestern State loss
	Postponement/Cancellation
Bold	Northwestern State team member

2022 Northwestern State Lady Demons softball game log

Regular season (28–20)

February (9–6)
Date	Opponent	Rank	Site/stadium	Score	Win	Loss	Save	TV	Attendance	Overall record	SLC record
Natchitoches Historic District Development Commission Lady Demon Classic
Feb. 11	Chattanooga		Lady Demon Diamond • Natchitoches, LA	W 1–0	Hoover (1-0)	Parrott (0-1)	None		325	1–0
Feb. 11	Arkansas–Pine Bluff		Lady Demon Diamond • Natchitoches, LA	W 4–0	Darr (1-0)	Green (0-1)	None		410	2–0
Feb. 12	UT Martin		Lady Demon Diamond • Natchitoches, LA	W 1–0	Seely (1-0)	Groet (1-1)	Hoover (1)		308	3–0
Feb. 12	Baylor		Lady Demon Diamond • Natchitoches, LA	L 0–5	Binford (1-0)	Rhoden (0-1)	None		404	3–1
Feb. 13	Chattanooga		Lady Demon Diamond • Natchitoches, LA	Game cancelled

Feb. 16	at Louisiana Tech		Lady Techsters Softball Complex • Ruston, LA	W 3–2	Hoover (2-0)	Pickett (2-1)	Seely (1)		540	4–1
Chattanooga Challenge
Feb. 18	vs. Tennessee Tech		Frost Stadium • Chattanooga, TN	L 0–5	Bryson (2-0)	Rhoden (0-2)	None		21	4–2
Feb. 18	at Chattanooga		Frost Stadium • Chattanooga, TN	W 3–1	Seely (2-0)	Alley (0-2)	Hoover (2)		187	5–2
Feb. 19	vs. Purdue Fort Wayne		Frost Stadium • Chattanooga, TN	W 3–0	Darr (2-0)	Johnson (0-2)	None		120	6–2
Feb. 19	SIU Edwardsville		Frost Stadium • Chattanooga, TN	L 4–5⁸	Haynes (2-3)	Hoover (2-1)	None		47	6–3
Feb. 20	vs. Indiana State		Frost Stadium • Chattanooga, TN	L 1–2	Adamson (2-0)	Seely (2-1)	Benko (1)		62	6–4

Mardi Gras Mambo
Feb. 25	vs. Lipscomb		Youngsville Sports Complex • Youngsville, LA	W 2–0	Seely (3-1)	Veneziale (1-3)	None		106	7–4
Feb. 25	vs. Eastern Illinois		Youngsville Sports Complex • Youngsville, LA	W 7–5	Darr (3-0)	Morio (1-2)	Hoover (3)		100	8–4
Feb. 26	vs. No. 2 Alabama		Youngsville Sports Complex • Youngsville, LA	L 3–8	Fouts (5-0)	Hoover (2-2)	None			8–5
Feb. 26	vs. St. Thomas		Youngsville Sports Complex • Youngsville, LA	W 5–3	Darr (4-0)	True (0-2)	Hoover (4)		48	9–5
Feb. 27	vs. Portland State		Youngsville Sports Complex • Youngsville, LA	L 7–9	Frost (3-1)	Rhoden (0-3)	None		80	9–6

March (12–6)
Date	Opponent	Rank	Site/stadium	Score	Win	Loss	Save	TV	Attendance	Overall record	SLC record
Mar. 1	Grambling State		Lady Demon Diamond • Natchitoches, LA	W 8–1	Darr (5-0)	Shells (0-1)	None		109	10–6
Boerner Invitational
Mar. 4	vs. Fordham		Allan Saxe Field • Arlington, TX	W 6–1	Hoover (3-2)	Miller (1-4)	None		156	11–6
Mar. 4	vs. UTSA		Allan Saxe Field • Arlington, TX	L 2–3	Estell (2-4)	Darr (5-1)	None		156	11–7
Mar. 5	vs. Fordham		Allan Saxe Field • Arlington, TX	L 3–5	Watkins (1-0)	Seely (3-2)	None		156	11–8
Mar. 5	vs. UTSA		Allan Saxe Field • Arlington, TX	W 5–0	Hoover (4-2)	Williams (0-4)	None		156	12–8

Mar. 12	at Houston		Cougar Softball Stadium • Houston, TX	L 2–7	Todd (3-2)	Hoover (4-3)	Wilkey (2)	ESPN+	281	12–9
Mar. 12	at Houston		Cougar Softball Stadium • Houston, TX	L 3–5	Wilkey (5-4)	Darr (5-2)	None	ESPN+	281	12–10
Mar. 13	at Houston		Cougar Softball Stadium • Houston, TX	L 0–5	Flores (2-4)	Seely (3-3)	None	ESPN+	339	12–11
Mar. 16	at Jackson State		JSU Softball Field • Jackson, MS	W 7–3	Hoover (5-3)	Hill (3-4)	None		18	13–11
Mar. 16	at Jackson State		JSU Softball Field • Jackson, MS	W 3–2	Rhoden (1-3)	Hopson (0-1)	Darr (1)		22	14–11
Tiger Classic
Mar. 18	vs. James Madison		Tigers Softball Complex • Memphis, TN	W 8–6⁹	Darr (6-2)	Humphrey (0-1)	Hoover (5)			15–11
Mar. 18	vs. East Tennessee State		Tiger Softball Complex • Memphis, TN	W 7–1	Rhoden (2-3)	Tucker (0-1)	None			16–11
Mar. 19	vs. East Tennessee State		Tiger Softball Complex • Memphis, TN	W 9–1⁵	Darr (7-2)	Arnott (0-7)	None		61	17–11
Mar. 19	at Memphis		Tiger Softball Complex • Memphis, TN	L 4–9	Siems (6-8)	Seely (3-4)	None		309	17–12

Mar. 23	UT Arlington		Lady Demon Diamond • Natchitoches, LA	Game cancelled
Mar. 25	at Houston Baptist		Husky Field • Houston, TX	W 5–1	Hoover (6-3)	Swanson (4-3)	None	ESPN+	288	18–12	1–0
Mar. 25	at Houston Baptist		Husky Field • Houston, TX	W 10–2	Darr (8-2)	Cotton (2-4)	None	ESPN+	288	19–12	2–0
Mar. 26	at Houston Baptist		Husky Field • Houston, TX	W 7–1	Rhoden (3-3)	Venker (1-5)	None	ESPN+	279	20–12	3–0
Mar. 29	Louisiana Tech		Lady Demon Diamond • Natchitoches, LA	W 6–2	Hoover (7-3)	Hutchinson (5-5)	None		276	21–12

April (7–5)
Date	Opponent	Rank	Site/stadium	Score	Win	Loss	Save	TV	Attendance	Overall record	SLC record
Apr. 1	Nicholls		Lady Demon Diamond • Natchitoches, LA	W 1–0	Hoover (8-3)	Lehman (4-8)	None		225	22–12	4–0
Apr. 1	Nicholls		Lady Demon Diamond • Natchitoches, LA	W 4–3⁸	Rhoden (4-3)	Westbrook (0-3)	None		204	23–12	5–0
Apr. 2	Nicholls		Lady Demon Diamond • Natchitoches, LA	L 4–5	Lehman (5-8)	Hoover (8-4)	None		201	23–13	5–1
Apr. 8	at Texas A&M–Corpus Christi		Chapman Field • Corpus Christi, TX	W 2–1¹²	Hoover (9-4)	Gilbert (3-8)	None		153	24–13	6–1
Apr. 8	at Texas A&M–Corpus Christi		Chapman Field • Corpus Christi, TX	L 3–4	McNeill (2-1)	Seely (3-5)	None		168	24–14	6–2
Apr. 9	at Texas A&M–Corpus Christi		Chapman Field • Corpus Christi, TX	L 1–5	Smith (4-6)	Darr (8-3)	None		207	24–15	6–3
Apr. 14	McNeese State		Lady Demon Diamond • Natchitoches, LA	L 0–1	Vallejo (10-6)	Hoover (9-5)	None		228	24–16	6–4
Apr. 15	McNeese State		Lady Demon Diamond • Natchitoches, LA	L 2–3	Tate (8-7)	Seely (3-6)	Vallejo (1)		237	24–17	6–5
Apr. 15	McNeese State		Lady Demon Diamond • Natchitoches, LA	W 8–3	Rhoden (5-3)	Sanders (6-2)	None		244	25–17	7–5
Apr. 19	at Grambling State		GSU Softball Complex • Grambling, LA	Game cancelled
Apr. 22	Incarnate Word		Lady Demon Diamond • Natchitoches, LA	W 1–0	Hoover (10-5)	Trapp (4-7)	None		204	26–17	8–5
Apr. 22	Incarnate Word		Lady Demon Diamond • Natchitoches, LA	W 5–3	Darr (9-3)	Floyd (2-5)	None		185	27–17	9–5
Apr. 23	Incarnate Word		Lady Demon Diamond • Natchitoches, LA	W 2–0	Rhoden (6-3)	Myers (3-4)	None		209	28–17	10–5

May (0–3)
Date	Opponent	Rank	Site/stadium	Score	Win	Loss	Save	TV	Attendance	Overall record	SLC record
May 6	at Southeastern Louisiana		North Oak Park • Hammond, LA	L 3–7	Zumo (17-4)	Hoover (10-6)	DuBois (2)		318	28–18	10–6
May 6	at Southeastern Louisiana		North Oak Park • Hammond, LA	L 0–8⁵	Comeaux (10-3)	Rhoden (6-4)	None		318	28–19	10–7
May 7	at Southeastern Louisiana		North Oak Park • Hammond, LA	L 1–6	Zumo (18-4)	Hoover (10-7)	None		294	28–20	10–8

Post-Season (1–2)

Southland Tournament (1–2)
Date	Opponent	(Seed)/Rank	Site/stadium	Score	Win	Loss	Save	TV	Attendance	Overall record	Tournament record
May 10	vs. (5) Incarnate Word	(4)	North Oak Park • Hammond, LA	W 4–3	Hoover (11-7)	Trapp (6-9)	None	ESPN+	191	29–20	1–0
May 11	vs. (1) McNeese State	(4)	North Oak Park • Hammond, LA	L 5–6⁸	Vallejo (17-7)	Rhoden (6-5)	None	ESPN+	267	29–21	1–1
May 12	vs. (3) Texas A&M–Corpus Christi	(4)	North Oak Park • Hammond, LA	L 3–4	Smith (5-9)	Seely (4-6)	Gilbert (2)	ESPN+	242	29–22	1–2

Schedule Source:^[6]

*Rankings are based on the team's current ranking in the NFCA/USA Softball poll.

References

^ "2022 Softball Standings". southland.org. Retrieved June 5, 2022.
^ "Cowgirls Voted to Top Spot in 2022 Softball Preseason Poll". www.southland.org. Retrieved March 18, 2022.
^ "2022 Softball Preseason All-Conference Teams Announced". www.southland.org. Retrieved March 18, 2022.
^ "Softball Inks Many's Ford". Northwestern State University Athletics. Retrieved March 19, 2022.
^ "Softball adds junior college pitcher Denton". Northwestern State University Athletics. Retrieved March 19, 2022.
^ "Softball schedule features four NCAA tournament opponents". Northwestern State University Athletics. Retrieved March 19, 2022.

[1] "2022 Softball Standings". southland.org. Retrieved June 5, 2022.

[2] "Cowgirls Voted to Top Spot in 2022 Softball Preseason Poll". www.southland.org. Retrieved March 18, 2022.

[3] "2022 Softball Preseason All-Conference Teams Announced". www.southland.org. Retrieved March 18, 2022.

[4] "Softball Inks Many's Ford". Northwestern State University Athletics. Retrieved March 19, 2022.

[5] "Softball adds junior college pitcher Denton". Northwestern State University Athletics. Retrieved March 19, 2022.

[6] "Softball schedule features four NCAA tournament opponents". Northwestern State University Athletics. Retrieved March 19, 2022.

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[6]

Northwestern State Lady Demons softball
Venues	Lady Demon Diamond (1979–Present)
Head coaches	Pam Carey (1979) Debra Pheil (1980) James Smith (1981–1984) Linda Jones (1985–1986) Rickey McCalister (1987–1994) Gay McNutt (1995–2000) Ty Singleton (2001–2002) Eileen Schmidt (2003–2004) Mike Perniciaro (2005) Becky McMurtry (2006–2008) Donald Pickett (2009–2023) Lacy Prejean (2024– )
Seasons	1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2023 2024 2025
Women's College World Series appearances in italics