By BRIAN TYNES

Sports Writer

Lady Techster softball will soon be in full swing, and two of the Western Athletic Conference's best players will be on display.

Amber Miles and Brittany Stanley, both senior outfielders for the Lady Techsters, were tabbed Preseason All-WAC by the league's coaches and are Academic All-WAC players for the second straight year.

Stanley is a two-time All-WAC honoree, while Miles was All-WAC in 2004. The two were the also conference's top base-thieves.

Miles recorded 29 stolen bases in 34 attempts to lead the conference, and Stanley took 18 bags in 24 tries.

Miles also set a school record with 68 hits on her way to a .337 batting average, and Stanley hit .327 with 55 hits.

Tech's third-year head coach Sarah Dawson said she is hoping for them to be the best lead off combination in the league.

"Amber and Brittany are the top of our line-up, and they were our one-two all last year," Dawson said. "The year before [2003] they flip-flopped, but they're used to holding down the top two spots. They really provide a powerful one-two punch at the beginning of the line-up."

But Dawson said offense is not their only strength.

"It's amazing what they do for us on defense, too." Dawson said. "This fall both of them saved extra base hits, and as a former pitcher, your best friend is an outfielder that can fly and make phenomenal plays."

A young team will be joining Miles and Stanley this spring.

The 17-player 2005 roster includes more freshmen (six) than any other classification and only one junior, but Dawson sees the youth as a positive because the younger players are starting to develop.

"Christine Echols is our only returning catcher, and she's really done a good job of stepping up and being a leader," Dawson said. "Last year she was number three on our depth chart. So she had a lot of growing up to do with understanding and taking on the all the responsibility that a catcher has."

Freshmen Regan Clark and Lianne Albert will be the back-up options behind the plate, and Dawson said they will split time at third base, depending on who is catching and who has the hot bat.

Dawson said she will be replacing two four-year starters in the middle infield, and sophomore Jessica Elson will move from last year's shared role at third base to this year's starting short stop.

"She came back this year in better shape and has worked on improving her fielding skills and is a lot more confident," Dawson said. "She's done a great job for us at short stop and is one of our top offensive kids."

Dawson said senior Ashley Palma is the front-runner at first base, and second base is a toss-up between sophomore Nikki Ducey and freshman Rochelle Sandberg.

Dawson also said sophomore Carly White is a utility infielder and will compete for playing time at both first and second base.

But while new faces will be scattered throughout the infield, Dawson said the pitching staff will be constant.

"Our number one pitcher is Lindsey Meadows, and I expect her to pitch the majority of the games," Dawson said. "Lindsey is more of a strikeout pitcher and can overpower a batter, while our number two, Kristin Rupp, usually relies on keeping the ball down and getting groundouts."

Dawson said Lady Techster fans may notice a change this season from years past.

"I feel offensively we're stronger than what we were last year," Dawson said. "The majority of our offensive strength is in our freshman and sophomore classes.

"Historically, Tech has been more about defense and pitching, and I really think this year we're going to be just as strong offensively as we have been defensively. We have to be that way if we're going to be competitive because it's no longer a one to nothing type game like it used to be."