DENVER – There may be a little snow on the ground, but softball season is upon us.
 
And, despite Monday's snowfall, MSU Denver is fully expecting to play five home games this weekend at the Regency Athletic Complex. It's just the second time in the past five years the Roadrunners will open the season at home.
 
"We're excited about that," Metropolitan State University of Denver coach Annie Van Wetzinga said. "The last couple of years we've opened on the road and that can be tough – especially if you have a young team.
 
"We have a mix, but we've got some young players who are going to be in some big spots and so I thought it would be important to try to set us up a little more for success, and I think starting at home will be a big part of that."
 
Sunny skies with a high of 54 degrees are forecast for Friday, when the Roadrunners play host to Sioux Falls (S.D.) in a 4 p.m. game.
 
On Saturday, MSU Denver plays both the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs (11 a.m.) and Sioux Falls (3 p.m.), and they'll square off with the same teams Sunday in reverse order (Sioux Falls at 11 a.m. and UCCS at 3 p.m.). Sioux Falls and UCCS play one another at 1 p.m. both Saturday and Sunday. Good weather is forecast for the whole weekend.
 
Despite the advantages of opening the season at home, though, the Roadrunners are fully expecting to have to earn what they get against their opening opponents.
 
Sioux Falls was 31-19 last season and finished sixth in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference at 15-9. The Cougars are picked to finish eighth this year. UCCS is a Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference rival of the Roadrunners who were 27-27 overall and 22-18 to tie for fifth in the RMAC in 2018. The Mountain Lions are picked to finish seventh this season.
 
"Both are quality opponents," Van Wetzinga said. "Sioux Falls was solid last year, won 30-plus games, and UCCS was around .500 and gave us fits, so they'll be tough as well.
 
"I don't get caught up too much in who we're playing, I really focus more on what we're doing – especially the first weekend. The message is, 'Go out there, compete hard, have fun and fall back on your training. We've been working hard, so let's put it into action."
 
The Roadrunners, picked to finish fifth in the RMAC after going 34-22 overall last season, including 28-12 in the league, have to replace their top three power threats from last season in Kristyn Peters (Lakewood, CO/Dakota Ridge H.S.) (.359, eight homers, 39 RBIs), Sarena Espinoza (Corona, CA/Corona Centennial H.S.) (.322-8-40) and Annika Anderson (Loveland, CO/Loveland H.S.) (.329-6-32).
 
But there are plenty of strong candidates to fill the offensive void, starting with RMAC freshman of the year Koryna Wright (Rancho Cucamonga, Calif./Rancho Cucamonga) (.331-5-32). On the mound, preseason All-RMAC selection Darby McGhee (Camarillo, Calif./Adolfo Camarillo) anchors a four-player staff.
 
"We lost Annika, Sarena and Kristyn Peters (Lakewood, CO/Dakota Ridge H.S.) – all three had been mainstays in our lineup for three or four years," Van Wetzinga said. "So it isn't just production, but it's also the experience, which makes a difference.
 
"We have some players returning who can step up who maybe weren't in that position last year where we needed them as much. Kory Wright, I think, can pick up where she left off. Alyssa Richter (Thornton, Colo./Mountain Range) is someone who, as the season went on, she got better – and we started to see her power potential. Even though she plays shortstop, she's physical and has some pop. And Jasmine Wessel (Thornton, Colo./Horizon), she maybe didn't provide a lot of pop, but it was her first year here and it was a transition for her. We've really liked what we've seen from her in practices and scrimmages, and she's hitting with a lot more power."
 
Richter hit .333-4-22-7 last season, while Wessel hit .311. Other returning regulars include second baseman Ashlee Kim (Castle Rock, Colo./Douglas County) (who hit .338 with 18 stolen bases) and outfielders Megan Sansburn (Littleton, Colo./Dakota Ridge) (.328-5-34-12) and Celyn Whitt (Broomfield, Colo./Legacy) (.311).
 
"Ashlee Kim (Castle Rock, Colo./Douglas County) is a leader who has been in our lineup for a lot of years now," Van Wetzinga said.
 
While there are voids to be filled, Van Wetzinga is eager to see how that will play out.
 
"We did land some options," she said. "We're just working on developing them a little bit. We've got a few kids with some size, and when they connect, the ball goes – so that's exciting. The biggest key will be getting them that experience and getting them settled in – that transition can be tough.
 
"There's a lot of things up in the air and girls competing for spots. The first couple of weekends, there's a chance we'll see different lineups with people in actual game situations to help us figure things out. It's a good problem to have. As good as it is to know that this group is our starters and this group isn't, sometimes that means there's a big dropoff. That's not the case for us, and that's a good thing. There's good, healthy competition and we know we have different people who can do different things for the team. We plan to use that."
 
On the mound, McGhee was 16-10 with a 3.56 ERA while striking out 106 in 165 1/3 innings last year. Kylee Burnside (Idaho Falls, Idaho/Skyline) was 13-9 with a 3.27 ERA with 97 strikeouts in 139 innings. And Destinee Lopez (La Verne, Calif./Bonita) was 5-4 with a 5.22 ERA. Added to that group is freshman Julia Heitz (Queen Creek, Ariz./Queen Creek).
 
"We have four solid options," Van Wetzinga said. "Obviously Darby has the most experience, and Kylee being a senior also has a lot of experience at the college level. Destinee was kind of a spot starter and reliever, but she still got some quality innings.
 
"I think it's more about them taking that step now that they've got some time under their belt with us. Julia, as a freshman, is someone who is probably going to need some time to figure everything out, the intensity of college softball, but we're excited about what she can bring to the table also."
 
Van Wetzinga said her pitchers' strengths complement one another, so relying on one to shoulder all the vast majority of the innings isn't necessary. Complete games won't always be required.
 
"I think the best thing about our pitching staff is that we are looking at it as a staff," she said. "We can put a lot of good things together. If we need to get wins with a staff approach, we're fine with that, that's why we've brought in multiple people who can do different things."
 
Since the meetings with UCCS this weekend are non-conference games, the Roadrunners don't officially open league play until Feb. 23 with a series at Chadron State. Van Wetzinga is expecting the RMAC to offer quality competition.
 
"I've been in the RMAC for a while, both here and in my time at (Colorado School of) Mines, and I think the last couple of years, and now adding Dixie State, it's the deepest it's been," Van Wetzinga said. "We had two NCAA regional teams and Regis was really close last year – so it was probably the closest we've ever been to having three teams in it. It can be a dogfight. But I like the way the schedule sets up for us. Our key is developing and seeing who are going to be our consistent performers."