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The 2013 softball season gets underway this week and the Stanford team is primed to make a run to the Women's College World Series.

Among its core group of veterans, Stanford has a returning All-American and four all-region selections on this year's squad. The Cardinal will endure tough competition as it competes for a Pac-12 title and a chance to advance to Oklahoma City at the end of the season.

Stanford begins play Thursday in the Kajikawa Classic in Tempe, Ariz. The Cardinal opens against Bradley before facing Oklahoma and Portland State on Friday.

Stanford is coming off a 40-19 campaign, during which it advanced to its 15th consecutive NCAA Tournament. The Cardinal posted its 13th 40-win season under head coach John Rittman. The Cardinal is still seeking its first NCAA title.

"Our expectations for the 2013 season are very high," said Rittman. "Nothing changes in regards to our goals as far as winning a Pac-12 championship and competing for a national championship. We've lost three seniors from last year's team who were starters, so replacing them is not going to be easy. However, we do have four seniors this year who have stepped up in providing leadership and will be impact players for us this year."

The 2013 Cardinal squad only boasts six upperclassmen on a roster of 18, so the underclassmen will need to provide consistency and stability in the lineup.

However, Stanford's veterans have experienced success at the collegiate level and will be looked upon to provide leadership for the newcomers.

Fifth-year senior Sarah Hassman will be back at full strength and provides speed in the lineup and outfield. Shortstop Jenna Rich is a returning All-American and senior pitcher Teagan Gerhart will be the Cardinal's ace in the circle. Senior infielder Tegan Schmidt also will be asked to take on a greater role in the lineup this season. The juniors, Corey Hanewich and Danielle Miller, have obtained invaluable experience during their two years on The Farm, while dealing with successes and adversity.

The juniors and seniors have combined to produce 355 runs, 508 hits, 312 RBI and 643 strikeouts. The group boasts an All-American, 13 all-conference picks and six all-region selections.

"Our first key to success this season starts in the circle," explained Rittman. "We have to pitch well, which will lead to more wins. Secondly, we lost some key players defensively from last year so we have some holes to fill. We do have versatility defensively, so I think it is going to be important early to get people settled into positions. Finally, we are going to have to score runs and have some players step up and improve offensively from last year."

Stanford's veterans are joined by 12 underclassmen, led by sophomores Leah White and Hanna Winter.

White earned All-Pac-12 and All-West Region second team honors as a rookie outfielder. She led the team last season with 54 runs scored and paced the conference with 12 sacrifice bunts. Winter was a first team All-Pac-12 selection and a second team All-West Region pick as an infielder. Playing second and third base, Winter's 89 hits last season led the Pac-12 and were the most by a rookie in school history.

"Both Hanna and Leah had great years for us as freshmen both offensively and defensively," said Rittman. "They are probably going to be in the top three in the lineup this year, so I think they will build and improve off of their accomplishments from last season. They both have a lot of versatility offensively, and I think the biggest thing we will need from them is consistency."

This year's freshmen include utility player Kayla Bonstrom out of Tucson, Ariz., catcher Jessica Plaza from Huntington Beach, infielder Kaitlin Schaberg hailing from Lee's Summit, Mo., and pitcher Kelsey Stevens from Albuquerque, N.M.

"The freshmen class is eager to learn," said Rittman. "They are energetic, they are talented and they are going to have to step in and be productive for us to be successful this season."

Rittman, now in his 17th season as head coach, has guided the Cardinal to 16 consecutive winning seasons, made 15 straight NCAA postseason appearances and compiled a .685 winning percentage.

With the departure of associate head coach Trisha Ford, who became the head coach at Fresno State, Rittman has promoted third-year assistant Claire Sua-Amundson into that role. Former UMass pitcher and Olympian Danielle Henderson has been brought onto the staff and will take over pitching coach duties. Volunteer assistant coach Leticia Olivarez is back for a second season and helps out the staff in all areas of the program.

— Stanford Athletics

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