Kelly Saco was initially intrigued by the thought of an alternative climate when she decided to play for Syracuse. The Orange’s first baseman — a Miami, Fla., native — had never seen snow until she arrived on campus for her freshman season at SU.

But now as a junior, she’s tired of the cold weather. Especially when it gets in the way of the season.

‘For a while, it was new and cool, but we had a game in May last year that got snowed out,’ Saco said. ‘Come on, where does that happen? Maybe the North Pole, maybe.’

Syracuse opened its 2011 campaign the same way all Northeast schools do — away from home. The Orange played 27 of its 32 games in warm-weather climates, and all 32 games on the road.

SU had games in seven states over the last two-plus months. But SU finally has a chance to play at home this weekend as Notre Dame comes to Syracuse Softball Stadium to take on the Orange. Syracuse is set to play the Fighting Irish, one of the top teams in the Big East, for a three-game set that starts with a doubleheader Saturday and the finale on Sunday. This weekend starts a stretch through the rest of the season in which SU plays 16 of its final 23 games at home.

That dynamic of playing an entire half-season on the road is a challenge in recruiting for SU head coach Leigh Ross, as she attempts to bring Syracuse to the level of warm-weather schools that have yearly success.

Ross remembers the first thought that came to her mind when she took the job as Syracuse head coach in 2006.

‘It must be difficult to recruit kids to play softball in an arctic tundra,’ Ross said. ‘I grew up in Michigan, but I knew Syracuse is a different animal. Especially for the kids who grew up in warm-weather climates, where they could play outside all year round.’

The college softball realm has always been dominated by warm-weather schools. Arizona and UCLA have combined to win 19 of the 29 Women’s College World Series titles since the tournament began. No Northeast-based team has won the tournament since its inception in 1982.

Those numbers prove daunting, and they are also numbers recruits see. Northeast lost to South last weekend as Syracuse was swept by South Florida.

‘It’s just easier in places like Florida and California because you can play outside all year round,’ said USF head coach Ken Eriksen. ‘That’s also why warm places have a better selection of players coming out of high school.’

Still, Ross has made progress in putting the Orange on the recruiting map recently. Six of the eight position players that start for SU are from warm-weather areas, including Syracuse’s top three home run hitters this season.

Ross points to the recruitment of freshman Kealy McMullen as a huge win for SU.

‘She was one of the top players in the state of Washington,’ Ross said, ‘but we got her to come all the way across the country to play in freezing Syracuse.’

Ross has the Orange practicing indoors, even through April, to stay out of the cold. Manley Field House has everything the team needs, with a large field, indoor track and batting cages. She said it works out perfectly for SU because none of its practices are ever postponed due to inclement weather. Plus, her players can use the batting cages at Manley as a study break while they are studying down at the Stevenson Educational Center.

Syracuse will be braving the elements in its three games this weekend. But SU pitcher Jenna Caira said she doesn’t see it as a disadvantage at all.

‘It’s not a disadvantage for us. We just put on more Under Armour,’ Caira said. ‘Against Rutgers when it was 40 degrees, I had two layers on. It’s a mental game. You just have to tell yourself it’s not cold. We double up, we triple up with Under Armour and suck it up.’

jdsaffre@syr.edu

 

Published on April 6, 2011 at 12:00 pm

Contact Jarrad: jdsaffre@syr.edu