Twice, Syracuse softball head coach Mary Jo Firnbach tried to return to her alma mater, Southern Illinois. Twice, she’s been denied.

A tournament this weekend in Carbondale, Ill., was canceled because of weather, leaving Firnbach scrambling to find a place to play. After spending nearly all day Tuesday on the phone, she found Syracuse a spot in Florida State’s Seminole Challenge. The tournament will be the first of three that SU will play in Florida during the next two weeks.

‘I was getting excited to go back (to Southern Illinois),’ Firnbach said. ‘It’s disappointing, but we’re going to be facing quality competition.’

Instead of playing Southern Illinois, Northern Illinois and Iowa State, the Orangewomen will face much tougher competition. Host FSU is No. 15 in the nation. SU will also matchup against Mississippi State (11-5) and Big East-rival Pittsburgh.

After a weekend of hectic travel to and from Las Vegas, this weekend’s schedule may prove more difficult. The Orangewomen left Syracuse last night but did not fly from Buffalo to Tallahassee, Fla., until early today. Syracuse plays its first game tonight at 7 against MSU. After games against the Seminoles and Bulldogs on Saturday, SU returns home Sunday after an afternoon matchup with Pitt.

‘We only had one really hard practice this week,’ pitcher Tara DiMaggio said. ‘We were a little bit more relaxed and know what we have to work on.’

Though the Orangewomen went 2-3 last weekend, several players got off to hot starts. DiMaggio became the first SU player to be recognized as Big East Co-Pitcher of the Week. She pitched complete-game shutouts in both of Syracuse’s victories.

Junior second baseman Rachel Park earned the Big East Player-of-the-Week award, just the second player in Syracuse history to do so. She hit .438 with two home runs and three RBIs last weekend.

‘It just shows how our school is going to get recognized more and more,’ DiMaggio said. ‘Three years ago, no one would have noticed that. We just had career weekends.’

After focusing last weekend on playing outdoors for the first time, the Orangewomen have now settled into their season. Several players made their Syracuse debuts last weekend, including freshmen Cassie Morales and Alexis Switenko as well as junior-college transfer Haley Larsen.

‘I was a little nervous,’ Larsen said. ‘There were lots of fans, and I was a little tight. The second game was much better after I got rid of the first-game jitters.’

All of the teams the Orangewomen face this weekend have played more games than SU.

‘We’re just looking to build upon our strengths,’ Firnbach said. ‘It’s always tough when you face teams from warm climates who’ve had experience.’

Said DiMaggio: ‘It’s very much about using what we learned last weekend and just getting our hitting back in swing.’

Published on February 27, 2003 at 12:00 pm