Softball
Misses Victory Against Allegheny by a Hair
by Jesse Aron
The
Oberlin softball team got a boost of confidence last week, then
fell just shy of pulling off their first conference victory this
week.
It was a great game I thought we had them, Head
Coach Jane Wildman said the day after a heart-breaking 4-3 loss
to Allegheny College in the first game of Wednesdays doubleheader.
The Yeowomen played arguably their best conference game of the season
coming off a sweep of Lake Erie the week before in a non-conference
doubleheader.
In the first Allegheny game, the team scored three runs in the top
of the fourth to take a 3-2 lead in the game. The inning was highlighted
by first-year catcher Julia Dahers double down the left field
line that scored the tying and go-ahead runs.
Down 2-1, and with runners on second and third, I was just
trying to make solid contact, Daher said of her go-ahead hit.
However, Allegheny got back in the game quickly. In the bottom of
the fifth the Gators tied it up on a sacrifice fly after the runner
had been advanced to third on a bunt. Playing more small ball in
the sixth, Allegheny took advantage of a leadoff single and bunted
her over to second. She then stole third, and eventually came home
on a throwing error. Oberlin failed to rally in the top of the seventh
and dropped their fifth conference game in a row.
They
were bunting well and we just didnt get the outs when we needed
them, Wildman said. Senior Dawn Sweeny took the loss on the
mound, pitching six innings and giving up only two earned runs on
eight hits. Sweeny also went one for three at the plate, stole a
base, and scored on Dahers double in the fourth.
Daher stated that she thought this was the Yeowomens strongest
performance in a conference game, citing the teams consistency
throughout the day, as well as their multiple contributions. Everyone
had a real solid performance. Sometimes we have one really bad inning,
but this time we didnt.
The second game of the afternoon took a turn for the worse as Oberlin
lost to Allegheny 15-0. That loss dropped the Yeowomen to 0-6 in
the NCAC, and 3-12 overall.
Our pitchers were tired and their offense exploded,
Wildman said simply. Oberlin was only able to muster three hits
in that game, with Sweeny taking the loss on the hill again.
We were maybe a little frustrated after the first game,
Daher said. We have issues with our pitching depth and they
were just hitting the gaps, she continued.
Alleghenys
offensive production hit its peak in the bottom of the fourth inning
when they scored eight runs. The home team was led again by Fuduric
who went three for three, scored two, and had five runs batted in.
The
sweep at Allegheny came on the heels of a trip to Lake Erie last
Thursday in which the Yeowomen picked up their second and third
wins of the season. Oberlin scored 20 runs in the first game, and
posted 16 in the second, besting Lake Eries four and six respectively.
Coach Wildman was excited about the wins.
It
was fun, she said, It was really good for us to get
some confidence.
First-year
Jamie Johnson agreed that the Lake Erie games gave the team confidence,
and said that their energy has been way up recently.
Weve also been playing well as a team, she said.
Despite
being swept by Allegheny, the Yeowomen feel that the momentum of
the Lake Erie games, coupled with the strong showing in game one
of the doubleheader Wednesday, will propel them to good outings
in the future.
Feeling
good about the weekend, the team begins to prepare for a busy couple
of days as they host a doubleheader against Wooster on Saturday,
and another against Wittenberg on Sunday. Both games are scheduled
for 1 p.m.
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