SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – The Skidmore College softball team will play eight games against eight different opponents March 12-16 to begin the 2023 regular season in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. The Thoroughbreds are scheduled to open on Sunday, March 12 with games against Albertus Magnus College and SUNY Cortland.
 
Skidmore qualified for the 2022 Liberty League Softball Tournament after going 7-7 in the conference with wins in each of its final four regular season games. The Thoroughbreds lost to eventual champion Rochester and Ithaca in the tournament. Overall, Skidmore finished the 2022 season with a 24-14 record to set a new program win standard.   
 
This year, Skidmore and first year head coach Liz Neubinski welcome seven first years to the roster and nine returners. After scheduled games at Oneonta were postponed, the Thoroughbreds have been chomping at the bit to get out on the diamond. "We can't wait to finally hit the field as a team this spring," Neubinski said. "The team has been working hard all pre-season and I am very excited to see this group compete together this season."
 
Of Skidmore's nine returning players, four were regular starters on the 2022 squad. Seniors Melissa Mathias and Meghan Robertson were All-Liberty League Second Team honorees. Robertson was tied for second on the team among qualified hitters with a .380 batting average and led the squad with 28 runs batted in. Mathias hit .326 with 29 runs scored and committed just one error while patrolling centerfield for the Thoroughbreds for the majority of the season.
 
Junior middle infielder Chloe McGonagle hit .255 with two home runs and committed just one error on 123 chances in the field for a dazzling .992 fielding percentage.  
 
In the circle, Lindsey Raimondi went 11-5 with 12 complete games and a shutout over 105.1 innings of work. The senior posted a 4.42 earned-run average and tallied 85 strikeouts. Robertson threw 28.1 innings and tossed a complete-game shutout against Nazareth in Florida.
 
The coaching staff will rely on a mix of veteran experience and youth as it strives for continued success in 2023. "We have a great balance between veteran presence and newcomers and a lot of depth on the field," Neubinski said. "We hope to roll the momentum of the success of last season into this year and compete at a high level.
 
"It has been a lot of fun so far; I am looking forward to seeing what this team can accomplish."
 
Skidmore returns home to host Castleton University on March 25 as part of a stretch of seven non-league doubleheaders (four at home) before hosting Rensselaer to begin league play on Saturday, April 15.