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PENSACOLA, Fla. – Another University of West Florida softball season gets underway this weekend, as the Argonauts head to Gulf Shores, Alabama, for the Gulf Coast Invitational. UWF is coming off its second South Region Championship in the last three years, having made the trip to Denver, Colorado, last May for the NCAA Championship.
 
Fans can follow along with all four games at the GCI by clicking the live stats link above, or by finding the same link at GoArgos.com/Softball.
 
At the Gulf Coast Invitational
West Florida will start its season at the Gulf Coast Invitational in Gulf Shores, Alabama, for a fifth consecutive year, beginning play on Saturday against No. 9 Florida Tech.
 
West Florida is 14-5 over the last four years at the tournament, after going 4-0 last year and outscoring opponents 35-8 over three days.
 
What A Year
The UWF softball program had a banner year in 2019, winning its fourth Gulf South Conference title, winning 54 games, and advancing to the NCAA Championship for the second time in the last three years.
 
Several student-athletes stood out for the Argonauts, as Teala Howard, Rhiannon Sassman, and Kelsey Sweatt were each named All-Americans, and all three etched their name into the UWF record book.
 
Howard's .464 batting average tied the UWF single-season record, and her on-base percentage (.498), hits (98), and steals (53) each rank in the top four in single-season UWF history.
 
Sweatt proved to be one of the toughest pitchers in the country, allowing just 4.1 hits per seven innings while allowing batters to hit just .170 against her.
 
Sassman finished off an incredible career at UWF, ranking in the top 10 in 10 different career categories.
 
This year's team set the program record for fielding percentage (.977) and improved its record by 16.5 games. West Florida set several high-water marks this year, in many respects having the program's best season in over a decade. The team's 54 wins are the most for the program since 2005, their 1.80 ERA is the best since 2006, and their 5.6 runs per game are the most since 2010.
 
High Rankings
West Florida will enter the 2020 campaign ranked No. 4 in Division II, according to the National Fastpitch Coaches Association preseason poll. The Argonauts were also picked to win the Gulf South Conference by league coaches, and had four preseason All-GSC selections.
 
UWF returns 9 starters and 15 letterwinners from last year's South Region Championship team, including All-Americans Teala Howard and Kelsey Sweatt, and NCAA Championship All-Tournament Team member Grace Gilbert. Those three, along with Jacquelynne Poling, were preseason all-conference picks.
 
The Gulf South Conference and South Region were well-represented in the national poll. GSC members Alabama Huntsville and Valdosta State were ranked Nos. 18 and 24, respectively, while South Region foe Florida Tech was ranked No. 9 and Saint Leo came in at No. 25. Additionally, Mississippi College was the fourth team receiving votes.
 
West Florida will play nine games against currently ranked opponents in 2020.
 
Year Two for McLean
Ashliegh McLean enters her second year at the helm for West Florida, and it's tough to imagine a better possible start for the Argonauts during McLean's first year. The McKinney, Texas, native led the team to a Gulf South Conference Championship, a South Region Title, and a trip to the NCAA Championship in Denver.
 
The team also spent four weeks as the No. 1-ranked team in the country, on the way to earning the 1-seed in the South Region. She was also named the GSC Coach of the Year and UWF earned Regional Staff of the Year honors from the NFCA.
 
It's Another Tough Schedule
As always, West Florida will start the season with some stiff competition. The year starts with a familiar foe, in No. 9 Florida Tech at the Gulf Coast Invitational in Gulf Shores, Alabama, before the Argonauts face fellow South Region opponents Nova Southeastern and No. 25 Saint Leo.
 
"Our first two weekends will be tough," McLean said. "We start the season with Florida Tech, who we beat to go to the World Series last year, and then we'll be back in their territory the following weekend for more tough South Region teams.
 
"The GSC will be just as tough, if not tougher than last year. The target will be on our back, but as long as we take it one day at a time, one pitch at a time, we'll be fine."
 
UWF will visit Melbourne, Florida, for the Florida Tech Invitational the following weekend. The Argonauts will see Saint Leo and Florida Tech again, while also matching up with New Haven, Palm Beach Atlantic, and Florida Southern.
 
It's then on to Gulf South Conference play, starting with road swings at Montevallo and West Alabama. West Florida wraps up the regular season with another tough stretch -- the team will host Rollins in a nonconference doubleheader, play host to Auburn Montgomery in a weekend series, visit Mississippi College, and host Valdosta State for the final series of the regular season.
 
Who's Back?
West Florida returns the majority of last year's team, including All-Americans Teala Howard and Kelsey Sweatt, All-South Region selections Jacquelynne Poling and Courtney McLellan, and NCAA Championship All-Tournament Team member Grace Gilbert.
 
UWF will also bring back starters Ally Merrill, Mika Garcia, Mallory Vining, and Callan Taylor, who each started at least 20 games for the Argonauts.
 
Gilbert and Sweatt combined for a 1.68 ERA across 337.2 innings last season, and Sweatt's 4.1 hits allowed per seven innings last season rank fourth in UWF history.
 
Offensively, West Florida returners hit .314 a year ago, with 14 of the team's 24 home runs.