Hats, gloves and blankets. That's how the spring softball season starts in Minnesota.
With a stiff eastern wind blowing into the Bloomington Jefferson dugout and rain falling at the start of the game, the Jaguars kicked-off the 2015 season in cold fashion on Tuesday at Dred Scott Field in Bloomington. They were also looking to sort out the pitching situation after Krista Flugstad won all but three of her 16 decisions during her senior season last spring.
Junior Rachel Evavold, a first baseman and designated hitter on last year's state tournament squad, stepped into the pitchers' circle to try and start the Jaguars off on the right foot.
"I told (Rachel) today she doesn't have to finish the whole game," Jefferson coach Jim Hanson said after Evavold went the distance in a 13-0, five-inning win over Chaska. "If she goes out there and goes hard and gives me what she's got, I've got somebody else to come in.
"I think we'll have to do a little pitching-by-committee this year," Hanson said.
That's a big change for Jefferson, as Flugstad was the workhorse last season -- Evavold only pitched five innings while also holding down a spot at first base.
But Hanson said Evavold won the right to pitch in the season-opener thanks to her work in six scrimmages leading up to Tuesday's matchup with Chaska.
"She was the best pitcher we had there so she got the job, and right now it's her job to lose," Hanson said.
Evavold said she was a bit worried about the conditions to start off the game, as she's never had much success pitching in rainy weather.
"We were a little nervous to start the game (in bad weather)," Evavold said. "But we knew we had to come out strong and finish well to win."
The Jaguars' new ace shook off the rain and bitter wind, firing strikes from the first pitch to the last out, allowing only two hits in her 2015 debut.
Evavold, who mainly served as a designated hitter for the Jaguars last year, said she put in a lot of time pitching to her position coach and her dad in preparation for taking over the starting role.
But she still managed to swing the bat well, driving in four runs with two hits in the Jags' victory.
Coming off of Jefferson's fourth-straight first-round exit from the state tournament last season, the Jaguars are determined to get the monkey off their backs and enter the 2015 season focused on achieving more.
"I think I'm ready for the season and (starting role)," Evavold said. "I think we have a really strong team, and I think we'll do well."
