VANCOUVER – The UBC Thunderbirds are all set to host the Bushnell Beacons for a season and home-opening four-game series this weekend and due to weather concerns, the contests have been pushed back to 1:00 p.m. and 3:00 p.m. on Saturday, March 2, with 11:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m. start times on Sunday, March 3.
T-Birds student-athletes and staff, including second-year head coach
Jennifer McKellar are eager to begin another Cascade Collegiate Conference season at the friendly confines of Collings Field at Nobel Park.
"I have really enjoyed my second-year so far and can't wait to start conference play," said McKellar. "We are super excited to play at home and bring our family, friends, alumni and fans out to Collings Field. Our team has been working really hard and coming off our pre-season trip, are thrilled to get the action started at home back-to-back weekends."
McKellar finished her first season at the helm of the program with a 17-13 conference record and a berth in the CCC playoffs. With the addition of six transfers and four freshmen, the talented 'Birds squad heads into the season looking to improve on last year's fifth-place result.
"This team has put in so much work building and developing an 'All In' team culture to push the bar and set some big goals for our program, especially around our winning record and post season expectations for ourselves," added McKellar. "Our young leadership is really growing into its own and the group is really bought into a team first culture. We have a lot of depth on the mound between our returning and new pitchers which is a big source of excitement for our squad. We are still sorting through how we will best string together our offensive chemistry but that is very normal this time of year. Our experience infield will be a source of stability to us as we work on jump starting our offense."
Though the team is welcoming a dozen newcomers, they have had plenty of time to get to know each other over the last month, thanks to taking part in 12 pre-season games from as close by as Washington state to as far away as Melbourne, Florida.
"This is the most competitive pre-season I have been able to put together in my coaching career," continued McKellar. "It was clear very early on that we have an ambitious and competitive group which allowed for me to go out and build a challenging pre-season to really prepare us for our season and strong CCC opponents. We have already had several tight one-run or extra-inning games against some very strong competition and we've learned so much about ourselves, how we respond to the highs and lows and the tenacity and resiliency it will take to pursue our goals and strive to be a top contender in the Cascade conference.
"We targeted the Sun Conference in Florida for its highly regarded reputation in the NAIA and it did not disappoint playing three strong teams, including our four-game serious split with SEU, a top 25 ranked team. Every game was a battle and I really think that has helped us build confidence and look at each game 1 pitch at a time, knowing that every team member plays a role in our ability to be successful and perform at our best."
The T-Birds kick their season off against the Bushnell Beacons, who fell short of making the playoffs in the 2023 season with a 7-23 conference record. Last season saw UBC win two of their three games against the Beacons.
"We opened up against Bushnell last year and I remember them for playing a full 7-innings, never letting up and challenging us every inning to keep them off the score board," concluded McKellar. "They are coming in on a 5-game win streak from their pre-season and saw some good competition in Arizona so they will be well prepared. Every weekend in the Cascade is a great challenge, so we look forward to the match-up."
All the action gets going at 1:00 p.m. PT on Saturday at Collings Field at Nobel Park.
