The Columbia softball team will finally escape the New York cold for some outdoor action, flying to Boca Raton, Fla. this weekend to face five major competitors in its season opener. Central Michigan, Florida Atlantic, Harvard, Towson, and Stony Brook will all challenge Columbia on the field.

“I think you get to a certain point inside that it’s just sort of frustrating to the team because they’re just like a caged animal—they’re waiting for someone to open up the cage,” head coach Kayla Noonan said. “They just want to get outside, they want to play, and then really we can look at what we need to work on.”

Central Michigan will be the first team Columbia faces in the series. Noonan acknowledges that Central Michigan—a competitive team in the Mid-American Conference—will be one of the tougher teams her players will face this year.

The Chippewas—who went 0-5 at the Troy Cox Classic at New Mexico State—recently fell, 7-6, to Eastern Illinois, who left the competition with a 5-0 record. CMU had a successful first three innings against EIU, establishing a four-run lead with the help of a solo homer by junior Christina Novak. The effort was not enough, though. The Chippewas allowed seven unearned runs in the fourth inning, allowing the Panthers to grab the lead. In the loss, CMU posted five hits and five errors.

Following CMU will be Florida Atlantic. During its last competition, Florida Atlantic advanced to 11-9 on the season with a win over University of Nevada, Las Vegas. In the close 5-4 game, junior Ambar Jones picked up two RBI with a single in the second inning to give the Owls the early lead. The Owls added three more runs in the third with a double by junior Amber Barton and a Rebels error.

After Columbia faces FAU, it will take on Ivy foe Harvard (2-2).

“Harvard got a great freshmen class,” Noonan said. “They also have some really important returners.”

Freshman pitcher Rachel Brown and junior Jessica Pledger provide two examples of the strength of the Crimson’s young and veteran players alike. Brown struck out 11 batters in her debut against Kansas before totaling another 10 the following day against North Texas. Pledger—who drove in the first and winning run against the Mean Green—and Brown were named to the all-tournament team at the Quality Inn and Suites Invitational.

After facing off against Harvard, Columbia will return to nonconference play against Towson (5-2). The Tigers, who recently fell to East Carolina, are led by juniors Kim Lempa and Mindy Bean. Lempa is hitting .556, while Bean has a team-best seven doubles, hitting .462.

Columbia will round out the road trip with local competition against Stony Brook (4-1). Junior Vicki Kavitsky has led the Seawolves in their five games this season—she hit .643 last weekend with a double, three triples, a home run, three RBI, and five runs. After hitting a home run in Stony Brook’s first at bat of the year, Kavitsky was named America East Player of the Week.

The Lions will start off the 2009 season against Central Michigan on March 6 at 4 p.m.