(Game 1 Stats) (Game 2 Stats) Goshen, IN — Just three days after capturing a needed Mid-Central Conference win on the road (click here for related article), the Goshen College softball team came up flat in a pair of non-league affairs against St. Mary’s College, dropping 0-9 and 0-8 decisions to the Belles at the Goshen College Softball Complex Thursday afternoon.
Goshen (5-18, 2-10) could only produce a total four hits on the day against powerful St. Mary’s pitching, holding the Belles scoreless in five of the total 11 innings played.
“These were tough losses for us today,” said Linda Bontrager, Goshen head coach. “Erin Sullivan is a good coach at St. Mary’s and her team hit well against us. Our errors didn’t help us, but our offense was absent. Our team was not fired up today and it showed.”
Bontrager’s team committed four errors on the afternoon, including three in the second contest, helping St. Mary’s slowly pull away in both games.
Junior Tera Brackman (0-5) suffered the pitching loss in the first contest, going four and two-thirds innings while striking out five and allowing seven hits and six runs. Sophomore Haly Williamson came on in relief, finishing the six-inning game with two hits given up but three runs scored.
St. Mary’s collected four doubles and a homer in the first contest, while Goshen’s three total hits were all singles. Freshman Kathryn Schlabach, sophomore Amy Clem and freshman Jessica Carney all reached base via a hit each, while the Leafs left five runners on base for the game.
Williamson (2-4) received the starting nod in the pitching circle in the second contest, and held St. Mary’s scoreless through the first two innings of work. The Belles then caught fire in the third, however, blasting three hits to drive in four runs. Williamson finished with four complete innings of pitching work, while Brackman — one inning pitched, four runs off of five hits — finished things in the fifth.
The Belles knocked out three doubles, a home run and a triple in the second contest while Goshen could garner just one hit, a single from freshman Heather FitzSimmons in the bottom of the fifth inning.
“This was a tough day especially after how we played on Monday against Huntington,” Bontrager said. “As a coaching staff, we believe in these girls. We’ll go back to the drawing board and try to make some adjustments. Our conference tournament is just around the corner, and we have the ability to win if we can figure out how to put it all together. Our pitchers are trying hard, but we’ve got to bring some offense.”
Goshen will return to MCC play on Saturday, when the team hosts the University of St. Francis for a double-header at the Goshen College Softball Complex. Game time for the first of two is slated for 1 p.m.
|
Freshman Kathryn Schlabach