TAYLORSVILLE, Utah (January 27, 2020) – After a long offseason, the Salt Lake Community College softball team will return to the field this week to open the 2020 season.
 
The Bruins will play in a weekend tournament hosted by the College of Southern Nevada, playing five games in total in the tourney – three games on Friday and two games on Saturday. Salt Lake will enter the season ranked at No. 5 in the NJCAA preseason polls, thanks to the residual momentum of returning to the top of the Scenic West Athletic Conference heap in 2019.
 
Entering the opener on Friday, SLCC coach Cyndee Bennett said her team is looking forward to returning to the field alongside its new signees.
 
"The girls on the team are anxious to get on dirt and grass," she said. "I can really feel the energy at practice. I am really looking forward to this season."
 
The Southern Nevada-hosted tourney traditionally features some of the top competition in the country, with national powers such as Yavapai College, Central Arizona and Arizona Western entering the tournament. Salt Lake will play 12 games in the preseason before taking a break throughout the month of February, starting Scenic West play on February 28 against Colorado Northwestern Community College.
 
Bennett said the Bruins will benefit greatly from the competition they will face.
 
"We have two very competitive tournaments in the next two weeks," she said. "These two tournaments will really give us a good idea of where we stand amongst the best teams in the country and will give us a lot of information on where we need to improve."
 
SLCC will play Eastern Arizona at 10:30 a.m. on Friday, facing Trinidad State Junior College at 1:00 p.m. and Yavapai College at 6:00 p.m. The Bruins play Arizona Western at 8:00 a.m. and Central Arizona at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday. Salt Lake will play its 2020 home opener on March 6.