Rarely on a softball team will you find a pig, a horse, and a princess. But with the sense of humor of three Saluki freshmen, anything is possible.

Freshmen centerfielder Marta Viefhaus, pitcher Erin Stremsterfer and third baseman Julie Meier have taken it upon themselves to liven up the SIUC softball team this season.

No, there are no animals or royalty running around at IAW Fields. Pig, Horse and Princess are the nicknames of Meier, Viefhaus and Stremsterfer, respectively.

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Meier got the title Pig because of uncanny impersonations of Jim Henson’s muppet Miss Piggy. Horse was tagged to Viefhaus for the way she gallops along the basepaths and how her long hair resembles a horse’s mane. Stremsterfer earned the name Princess for her so-called snobbish attitude.

She (Stremsterfer) thinks everyone should bow down, Meier said in a joking manner. It’s because she’s a pitcher, because pitchers all are always put on pedestals.

Enjoying themselves on the field and winning go hand in hand for the freshmen. Team bus rides can be the perfect stage for comedy shows.

You got to put some fun into it, Stremsterfer said. Even though it’s at a collegiate level and it’s got to be serious, you got to have some fun doing it.

Fun ranges from dancing between innings to mocking international languages in dugout. Stremsterfer’s Irish accent impressed her mom enough for her to buy the team a Shamrock that is now the Salukis good luck charm.

We’re not really leaders, but we try to get everyone laughing, Viefhaus said.

When away from the team, Stremsterfer’s 1997 red Wrangler Jeep with the top down is the only commodity needed to keep the energy going.

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From the looks of the Salukis 15-5 record and the success of the freshman this season, the excessive fun has not caused too much of a problem. Viefhaus is second on the team in RBIs (12), while Meier is tied for team lead in home runs with two. Stremsterfer has a 1.34 ERA and pitched four complete games.

The only obstacle left for SIUC coach Kay Brechtelsbauer is to see if there is a nickname for her.

We’re very fortunate to have all three of them one, their talent and two, their personality, Brechtelsbauer said. They’re fun to coach and fun to be around. If they have a nickname for me, I don’t know about it.

But one would have to wonder how athletes and first-time teammates could develop such a close friendships. In 1993, the three played for the St. Louis Illusions, a summer league team, but were arch rivals in high school.

Viefhaus and Meier were teammates at Marquette High School in Baldwin, Mo., 10 miles away, Stremsterfer became the first person to have her jersey retired at Parkway South High School in Manchester, Mo.

The rival schools played for the district championship three times and drew a large crowd from the West St. Louis area, where softball is the equivalent to what basketball is in Indiana.

On the field we were competitive back then, but then off the field we were friends, Meier said. We were at the level where we could do both.

Now the trio has forgotten about competing with one another to focus on leading the Salukis back to elite of the Missouri Valley Conference. But with league play not scheduled until April 4 and warm weather approaching quickly, expect to see an awful lot of the license plate STREM6 cruising the campus.

It is fine with Brechtelsbauer, as long as the team is ready at game time.

I don’t think I have to tell them anything, Brechtelsbauer said. When it’s time for the tournament, which is the conference tournament, I know they’ll be ready to go.