SB Position Preview: Pitchers and Catchers

As softball season approaches, North Texas will be playing as defending Conference champions for the first time in program history and coming out of the historic season the Mean Green will return 13 players from that championship roster. This is the first of a three-part series detailing the returners and newcomers in each position group.

Pitchers

The Mean Green will feature five pitchers in 2020, an upgrade from just the four that threw in 2019. Headlining that pitching staff is third-year ace Hope Trautwein who will be joined by redshirt senior Lauren Craine, sophomore Bailey Tindell along with freshmen Kailyn Berry and Ariel Thompson.

Trautwein, a 2019 C-USA First Team All-Conference selection, comes into 2020 with a career 2.99 ERA and 337 strikeouts. In 2019 the Plugerville native held opponents to a career-low .187 batting average over 204.1 innings pitched throughout 44 appearances while winning a team-high 22 decisions.

Tindell comes into 2020 after steady improvement all throughout the 2019 season. The Salado native finished her freshman campaign with a 3.94 ERA and a 6-9 record. The right-hander finished with 27 strikeouts in 91.1 innings while allowing opponents to hit at a mark of .307. Tindell's usage in game steadily increased throughout 2019 as she threw at least 4.0 innings in her final six appearances.

Craine will be returning to the rotation for the first time since May of 2017. The Aledo native is back in the circle for the first time since the 2017 season after sitting out the 2018 and 2019 seasons due to injury. Craine got back into game action during the fall schedule.

The newcomers are a pair of freshmen, one who was committed to the Mean Green from the start and a transfer. Thompson is a freshman from Sequoyah high school in Claremore, Oklahoma. Thompson is a right-handed pitcher who will be featured as a starter and also be seen in the lineup. Berry is a freshman from Atlanta, Georgia who was initially committed to Alabama State. The Duluth High School graduate will be featured in both a starter and relief role.

Catchers

Three backstops will be featured in 2020, one as a familiar face and two newcomers.

Senior Nicole Ochotnicki returns in 2020 after starting all 54 games a year ago. The Cedar Park native has tremendous chemistry with the pitching staff especially Trautwein. Ochotnicki has appeared in 155 games throughout her North Texas career and has a career batting average of .226. She has a career fielding percentage of .979 and has recorded 664 putouts throughout her career.

A pair of transfers will also see time behind the dish for the Mean Green. Tarah Hilton, a former East Central University Tiger joins the Mean Green for 2020. Hilton is a Haslet native and played her high school ball just down I-35 at Justin Northwest High School. Hilton posted a .407 average in 38 starts with 47 RBIs and seven home runs. She also posted a .967 fielding percentage while only committing two errors all season. Hilton will also see time in the outfield throughout the season.

Amarys Miller-Godsey will join the Mean Green after spending a season at Fairleigh Dickinson Univeristy in New Jersey. The Los Angeles, California native started 33 games for the Knights a year ago. She posted a fielding percentage of .989 and drove in 15 runs and hitting one home run. Miller-Godsey will also see time in the infield.

Calendar

Upcoming Events

Players Mentioned

Kailyn Berry

Lauren Craine

Tarah Hilton

Amarys Miller-Godsey

Nicole Ochotnicki

Ariel Thompson

Bailey Tindell

Hope Trautwein

Upcoming Events

University of North Texas Athletics