Coach Bowles rallying the troops before a softball game
Posted: Sep 09, 2021

Season Preview: 2021 Humber Softball

The defending provincial champions return to the diamond for the 2021 OCAA season with a gruelling five-game weekend in London Sept. 17-19.

Due to the late start of the OCAA season, the Hawks will play a condensed 18-game schedule, opposed to the standard 24-game schedule from last season. Humber's first six "home" games will be on the road. The Hawks won't play at Connorvale Park until Sept. 30 when they host the Conestoga Condors.

2019 Highlights
  • A walk-off from Jessica MacPherson in the provincial title game helped Humber capture its first OCAA championship since 2013.
  • The Hawks clinched the regular-season pennant for the first time in program history.
  • Humber's 15 home runs during the regular season were a new program record.
  • Humber ace Presly Buchanan set a single-season record with 54 strikeouts, becoming the first player in program history to be named the conference pitcher of the year.
Reversed the Curse

Before last season's provincial tournament run, Humber entered the postseason with seven straight playoff losses. The Hawks rolled through provincials, outscoring their opponents 17-4 in three games.

At the Helm

The all-time winningest coach in program history returns for his fifth season leading the softball team. In four seasons, Duaine Bowles owns a 69-39 (.639) overall record and was selected as the 2019 Doug Fox Coach of the Year.

Softball alumna Maddie Pasma joins Jaime Vieira (fifth season) and Brandon Costa (second season) on Coach Bowles' staff for the 2021 season.

Pushing Forward

With the departure of six graduating starters from the 2019 championship squad, Coach Bowles and the Hawks will see plenty of turnover in the new lineup.

  • Humber ace Meagan Muir will anchor the rotation, looking to duplicate her 2019 dominance. In 10 appearances that season, the Brampton native finished with an 8-2 record with a 2.28 earned run average.
  • Fourth-year infielder Alexa Vassos enters the season ninth all-time in hits (57), sixth in runs scored (55), and fifth in walks (27).
  • Third-year infielder Alexis Ferreira is the program's all-time leader in slugging percentage (.818) and on-base plus slugging (1.1251).
Oh Canada

Humber earned a berth into the 2021 Canadian Collegiate Softball Association (CCSA) national championship tournament in Kelowna, British Columbia. The top-eight collegiate programs from across the country will compete at High Noon Park Oct. 8-10. Click here for the championship website.

Watch Live

All six Humber home games will be streamed live on the Hawks Sports Network.