Photo By: Jake Richardson

Matt Meyer
Sports Reporter

Coming off a Cinderella run through the Central Regional tournament last year, the Mesa State softball team has all the pieces in place for another winning season.
“We’re really trying to live up to expectations and be a top team in the conference,” said centerfielder Gabriella Parra.
The Mavericks open the season ranked 22nd in the nation, and are picked to win the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference West Division and finish second overall in the RMAC.
They have also returned 2009 All-Region team selections juniors Sara Jordan and Lauren Cross. Cross started every game for the Mavericks, and finished last season with a .367 batting average, 51 hits, 38 runs, and 34 RBIs. Jordan, the team’s top pitcher heading in to this season, earned her all-region honors as a utility player. She ended last season with a .374 batting average and led the team with 13 homeruns, 49 RBI and a .687 slugging percentage. Jordan also led the team on the mound with 14 wins, 4 saves and an ERA of 3.11.
“For freshmen we’ve added Megan Smith,” coach Kris Mort said. “She has a ton of offensive potential%Proxy-Connection: keep-alive
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