Bandits open season with speed, power
As the Chicago Bandits enter their seventh NPF season, they have a fresh look with a new coach and a slew of new players on a team that considers itself the complete softball package.
They open the National Pro Fastpitch season Friday against the USSSA Pride in Florida in a three-game series.
“We have a well-rounded team, a great pitching staff, lots of speed and lots of power. And defensively I’ve already seen some top-10 worthy plays,” said Taryne Mowatt, one of team’s four pitchers.
One of those came in Tuesday’s exhibition as right fielder Amanda Williams laid out to stretch for a low fly ball, catching it as she hit the ground.
Williams, along with 10 teammates, is playing her first season with the Bandits.
She spent last season with the Tennessee Diamonds, as did catcher Shannon Coepking and Monica Abbott, the team’s starting pitcher following the retirement of Jennie Finch. Mowatt and pitcher Jamee Juarez played for the Akron Racers last season.
Of the team’s seven rookies, infielders Danielle Zymkowitz and Robin Thompson and outfielder Alexis Jager were signed following a tryout while the others were drafted.
The team selected first baseman Dorian Shaw (1st round) from Michigan, outfielder Megan Wiggins (2nd) from Georgia, and infielders Alisa Goler (3rd) from Georgia, and Kristen Shifflett (4th) from Radford University.
Having a new coach along with so many new players is giving the team a spark.
“This is my fourth season (with the Bandits) and this is the best team chemistry we’ve ever had,” catcher Rachel Folden said following Wednesday’s practice.
Head coach Darrick Brown agreed: “Attitude is great right now. We have a really good group and they all get along.”
Dorian Shaw said veterans are doing their part to instill pride and foster unity and help the younger players adjust.
The Bandits hope the compatibility leads to accomplishing their main goal.
“It’s everyone’s expectation to win a championship and have a ring,” Folden said. “We’re not interested in winning the regular season; we’ve won the regular season six out of the seven years and it’s just not the same unless you have the ring.”
The journey to a league title won’t be easy as they open their first two series against the reigning champs, led by Olympic gold-medalist Cat Osterman.
The Pride beat the Bandits in last year’s finals.
Brown sees these opening series as beneficial to the team in the long run.
“We’ll kind of get an idea of where we’re at, and then we’ll see what we need to do to work toward … what matters, the championship series,” he said.
While Mowatt said everyone is focused on what it takes to play at the highest level, Brown believes the hard work is already paying off.
There are strong players at every position, he said, and pitching should be a key strength.
“We have a good combination of speed and power in our pitching. We have a couple of the best lefties in the world with Monica Abbott and Nikki Nemitz, and Jamee Juarez and Taryne Mowatt are two very good righties,” he said.
The Bandits will play before a national audience Saturday (2 p.m., ESPN2) with a final game at the Disney complex on Sunday. They’ll return home to open their new stadium next Thursday through Sunday.
The players welcome the national exposure.
“The NPF, this is what we need,” pitcher Nikki Nemitz said. “I think we deserve it. We play our sport and we play it well, we play it quick and there’s excitement and people should get to see it. We’re just really excited.”
“We can’t wait to get out there,” Folden agreed.