The 2018 season will serve as a dawn of a new day for APSU softball.
The team that went 35-106 in their last three seasons issues in new head coach in Rodney DeLong and return five of the six top batters from last season.
The Govs will open their season on Friday, Feb. 9, in Statesboro, Georgia, as part of the Georgia Southern’s Eagle Round Robin Tournament.
APSU will play twice on opening day, starting off against Radford, who went 27-28 in 2017, before clashing with the host Eagles of Georgia Southern (24-29 in 2017) at 6 p.m.
The Govs will bat second in the inaugural game of the new season.
Sophomore utility fielder Emily Moore is expected to lead off for the Govs.
The freshman from Parker, Colorado, batted .208 last season through 96 visits to the plate.
The now sophomore recorded 20 hits and 19 runs on the season while finding a .327 on base percentage.
The Govs also return pitcher Kelsey Gross, who as a freshman, lead the team in wins.
The former Collierville Dragon wrapped up 76 strikeouts and allowed 144 hits through the 440 batters faced.
Gross, who was second in appearances for the team, is the only returning Gov who saw the mound in the prior season.
Hannah Thompson, sophomore, returns for her second season after not being accredited a visit to the mound in the 2017 season.
Kendall Vedder, a returning sophomore, is listed as a shortstop and pitcher on the 2018 roster after only playing in the field last season.
APSU recorded a measly five wins in the Ohio Valley Conference in the last season, a feat that saw them finish second to bottom in the standings.
The Govs five wins came from Morehead State, Tennessee Tech, Belmont, Tennessee State and Murray State.
Among those teams, Murray State finished highest in the conference with a fourth place finish behind an 11-7 season.
APSU will look to improve on their five-win conference season by returning a core of their batters.
Danielle Liermann, of Simi Valley, California, returns for her junior season after leading the team in batting average, hits, doubles, RBIs and slugging percentage in 2017.
The Govs also return Carly Mattson, who lead the team in home runs last season with 10.
Liermann followed behind with nine.
On the field, Mattson lead the team in catches and followed behind Christiana Gable for second most put outs.
APSU opens up their 58-game season on Friday Feb. 9 against Radford University in the Eagle Round Robin Tournament in Statesboro, Georgia. The team will play twice on Feb. 9.
The Govs will host their first game on Wednesday, March 21, against Lipscomb University before traveling to Morehead State on Saturday, March 24 to begin OVC play.
