Despite the chill of the early February air, a pair of the Kanawha Valley's local college spring sports begin their seasons Friday.
Granted, those seasons will begin in climates much farther south than West Virginia. The West Virginia State softball team travels to the University of North Carolina-Pembroke for a weekend tournament, while the WVU Tech baseball team heads all the way to Mount Vernon, Georgia for four games.
The Yellow Jackets will play Kutztown at 2 p.m. Friday, then Winston-Salem State at 6 p.m. Friday, and will play UNC-Pembroke at 10 a.m. Saturday before a noon Saturday game with Shippensburg. The Golden Bears will play noon games with Brewton-Parker College on Friday and Saturday, and follow them with 3 p.m. games with Southeastern University on Friday and Saturday.
WVU Tech returns to the diamond off a historic 2016 season. The Golden Bears' 40-16 finish set a program record for wins in a season. Tech also set a program record for consecutive wins with 15 and scored 23 runs on April 15 versus Cincinnati Christian, the most in team history.
The Golden Bears bring back Tanner Levine, a pitcher/infielder who hit .409 last season and led Tech with 13 doubles and seven triples and tied for the team lead with three home runs. Jayson Sykora returns to lead the pitching staff after going 7-1 with 4.39 earned-run average last season.
The Yellow Jackets finished the 2016 softball season at 26-28, losing 10 of their last 12 games. WVSU does, however, return five of its top seven hitters, led by sophomore Brookelyn Hale, who was second on the team with a .323 batting average last season. The top three pitchers - Calli Burton, Allyson Burgess and Chelsey Parkins - also return this season.