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Storyline
The Lindenwood softball team will open the 2010 season this weekend with a pair of home double-headers. 

Snow has wiped out the early portion of the Lady Lions' schedule, delaying the official start to the season. 

A year ago, Lindenwood finished with a 36-27 record, finishing third in the HAAC at 14-6. The team's season ended in the conference tournament semifinals. 

The Lady Lions return seven starters in 2010, including first-team All-HAAC center fielder Jessica Long, and second-team pitcher Rebecca Peddicord. 

Lindenwood will face Olivet Nazarene on Saturday, and on Sunday will meet Indiana Institute of Technology.

Lights Out
In 2009, Lindenwood's pitching staff was one of the best in the HAAC. That unit ranked first in fewest hits allowed and held opposing batters to a conference-low .215 batting average. That mark also ranked the team 18th in the nation. The Lady Lions were second in the conference in ERA with a 2.13 average.

Slick Fielding
The Lady Lions' defense logged the top fielding percentage in the HAAC last season. The mark of .959 was good for 22nd in the nation. Lindenwood also allowed the fewest errors per game in the conference. 

Ring 'Em Up, Sit 'em Down
The pitching staff had the eighth most strikeouts in the country last season with 390. Lindenwood's staff averaged 6.1 punchouts per contest, and had 10 games of 10 or more strikeouts and five in which they had nine. Lady Lion pitchers averaged nearly a three to one strikeout to walk ratio.

Stingy With Runs
A season ago the team only allowed 2.05 earned runs per game, good for second best in the HAAC and 39th in the country. The Lady Lions had 26 games of allowing one run or less, including 12 shutouts.

Heading For The Corner
Lindenwood ranked third in the nation in total triples with 22. That was quite an improvement from the year before in which the team only recorded nine. Overall, the squad had 113 extra base hits, posting 19 home runs and 42 doubles as well.

Heart Of The Order
Lindenwood returns four of its top five hitters from a year ago. Jessica Long lead the team with a .415 batting average and three home runs. The top run producer returns in Sophia Galati, who had three homeruns and 34 RBI. Dani Merli led the team in doubles with 13 and Galati collected 11. Sam Van Pelt posted a team-high four triples. All four players hit over .300 and had 23 runs batted in or more in 2009.

Dynamic Duo
Rebecca Peddicord and Aubrey Moss return in 2010 to headline the Lindenwood pitching staff. The two combined for 23 wins, five shutouts and 264 strikeouts in 2009.

Highway Robbery
The Lady Lions were one of the top base stealing units in the country last season. The team ranked sixth in the country in stolen bases with 106, which was tops in the HAAC. A total of 13 different players swiped a base and three had 10 or more thefts. Centerfielder Sam Van Pelt led the team with 23, ranking her in the top 25 in the NAIA and second in the conference.

Homeward Bound
The Lady Lions were tough to beat at home last year, compiling a 13-7 record. In home contests, the team averaged 5.3 runs per game compared to 4.6 on the road. It marked the second straight year in which the team had double-digit home wins. During that span, Lindenwood owns a mark of 32-12.

Wasting No Time
Lindenwood jumped on opposing teams early last year, outscoring them 60-23 in the first inning. The 60 runs were the most scored in any inning.

Scouting Olivet Nazarene
Olivet Nazarene will open its season on Friday against William Woods (Mo.) before meeting Lindenwood on Saturday. 

The Tigers went 31-24 last year, finishing second in the CCAC with a 13-5 record. 

Rachel Comoglio is the top returning player for the Tigers. She led the team in average (.363), slugging percentage (.569), on-base percentage (.483), RBI (58), and was tied for first in homeruns (7). She was also second on the team in stolen bases (16) and runs scored (45). Her 58 hits were third-best on the squad. 

Pitchers Katie Hannagan and Kelly Bluckner return as well. Both posted 12 wins each last year. Hannagan led the team in innings pitched with 140.2 and Bluckner had a team-high 18 complete games and three shutouts. 

Olivet Nazarene is led by Ritchie Richardson who is in his 15th year with the program. Richardson has collected 630 victories in his career.

Scouting Indiana Technology
The Warriors are currently 0-2 on the young season and will meet Harris Stowe prior to facing Lindenwood on Sunday. 

Indiana Technology opened the season with a pair of losses to Belhaven (Miss.), 8-2 and 9-3. Warrior pitchers were touched for 14 earned runs in the two games, and allowed opposing batters to hit better than .400. Jenn Anderson and Jessica Williams were the offensive spark plugs. Anderson connected on a two-run homerun in the first game and Williams had a solo shot in the other contest. 

The Warriors posted a 25-26 record in 2009, going 14-14 in the Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference. 

Becky Norris is in her sixth season as head coach at Indiana Technology.

Up Next
Lindenwood will travel to Ridgeland, Miss. next weekend to compete in the Belhaven Elite Tournament.