Last year, Stuedeman recorded the highest winning percentage by a  first-year coach in MSU softball history (.579). She led the team to its best April in school history at 13-1, and the Dogs finished the year with a record of 33-24, advancing to the first round of the NCAA Regionals. Even though MSU had the fourth toughest strength of schedule in the country, State finished with more than 30 wins for the first time since 2008.
Various reporters asked these questions at softball media day.
 
Q: Do you think the team will be able to build off the successful April it had last year?
A: Not to be cliche, but everything is a process. I tell them all the time, ‘Today plus today plus today equals your career.’  I hope the players that are here build on last year and their knowledge base. Nothing trumps experience; even athleticism doesn’t trump the experience card. The experience we built last year and the relationship building, I would hope would remain with them. They started at one place, and they learned a lot; now they’re starting from a higher level, and they continue to do that. I hope it does carry on into the new season.
 
Q: Take us through the strong points of your lineup.
A:We are fast. Last year, we were 22nd in the country in stolen bases per game. Before I got here, they were in the 40s in total stolen bases and we jumped to 98 with basically the same personnel. This year, we did not lose speed and added two very fast freshmen as well as a redshirt from last year who’s a sophomore who also has a lot of speed. Speed never slumps. I think we’re going to create some chaos on the bases with that. Hopefully we can get on base or if they’re not getting on base, we can pinch run with runners that can get on base and be fast. I’m excited about that. I think it’ll be fun for the fans to be able to see us running and taking extra bases.
 
Q: You mentioned speed. What areas offensively do you think you can make a jump in this year?
A:Assistant Coach Alan Reach talks about the goal of the hitter is to cross the dish as much as you can. We lost Brittany Bell and Ka’ili Smith, and they were both in the top-10 in the SEC in batting average. We need a couple of people to step up to fill those holes. We want to get those kids in scoring position and score when they’re there. Last year, we would hit when there was no one in scoring position. Hopefully we’ll put a big emphasis on improving that. Now, we’re focusing on crossing the dish as much as we can and hit when it matters the most. We need some kids to step up.
 
Q: What did you want to do with the pitching staff, and how have you tried to develop them?
A:I wanted them to know how incredible they were and how good they were. I wanted to teach them that we were going to utilize a staff mentality. When I played, you could go around the country and name one dominant pitcher on each team, and the scores were 1-0. We all came up with about seven around the country that are dominant pitchers and the starter plays the whole game. Seven, that’s all? We’re going to a baseball mentality with a starter, a closer and a middle reliever. We did that last year. We talked about the staff mentality and how each person sets the other one up for success. I wanted to create a culture of confidence and a culture of a staff.
In the bullpen, I wanted them to have an attitude that they can fail and it be OK because I wanted them to try out lots of thing that work for them instead of being in a cookie-cutter type of pitching. They’ve experimented with a lot of ideas, and we’ve tried to pick what works for each different one to make them better.  I think it was them just buying into the staff philosophy and their willingness to experiment and learn and grow. It’s been incredible to work with them.
We added Alison Owen and a freshman (Jacey Punches). We lost two and added two, so I feel good about the depth. We have three starters that can go in at anytime, and all three of them are very competitive and want the ball and want to take on the staff mentality. That will help Jacey Punches get her feet wet in the league. I wish it was like football where they can come in and take that redshirt year. But I think we have some depth in the circle for sure.
 
Q: Do you feel like this team is close to becoming a top team in the SEC?
A:The whole objective this year has been higher expectations of yourself, your support staff and everyone around you so that we can be a contender. They know that that is the coaching staff’s goal. Last year at LSU, the box scores were the same for both teams, but the score is 4-0 LSU. I think that says a whole lot. They have a gorgeous stadium so they should win? It’s about expecting to do well. We talk about being winners and not necessarily judging by the scoreboard. We can go home every night – we call it the pillow test – you put your head on the pillow and say, ‘Did I do everything in my power to win the day?’