Although the Massachusetts softball team has a conference-leading 10-3 record and is supporting its preseason pick to win the Atlantic 10, there’s reason to believe the trophy won’t come nearly as easily this year.
That reason?
The Minutewomen’s lethargic offense. Last year, when UMass compiled a 17-0-1 conference record on its way to claiming the conference title, the team batted a conference-leading .292 average. That average was helped by then-seniors Carly Normandin and Sarah Reeves, who hit .400 and .340, respectively. Katie Bettencourt, a sophomore last year, contributed with a .333 average. However, Bettencourt, arguably the Minutewomen’s most productive hitter, has missed the last 20 games due to an injury suffered in a game against St. John’s on March 13.
Without those four players, UMass has relied on freshman Lindsey Webster and junior Kyllie Magill to provide the majority of offense. Webster has been invaluable despite missing eight games, batting a team-leading .312 to go along with 19 runs scored, four home runs and 15 RBIs. Magill, who hit .303 last year, is batting .298, good for second on the team. She also leads the Minutewomen with 19 RBIs and 20 runs scored out of the leadoff spot.
Senior Meghan Carta, who hit .308 last season and led the team in home runs (13) and RBIs (43), is mired in a season-long slump. With a .226 average, two home runs and 18 RBIs, Carta is far off pace from replicating last season’s performance which earned her selections to the NFCA All-Northeast Region First Team and the A-10 All-Conference First Team. With Normandin and Reeves gone, and Bettencourt indefinitely sidelined, Carta was expected to help lead UMass coach Elaine Sortino’s youthful roster.
It certainly hasn’t been as easy as last year when the Minutewomen were second in the A-10 with 266 runs scored, outscoring their opponents by 149. Although UMass hasn’t played as many games as some of its A-10 foes, its 140 runs scored are still a major cause for concern as its places them at eighth in the conference in that statistic.
Sortino has repeatedly said that her team simply needed time to polish its approach at the plate. While there have been improvements from the beginning of the season, the Minutewomen could afford to provide insurance runs for their ace, Sara Plourde.
Plourde is following up last year’s campaign in which she went 40-8 with a 1.30 ERA and a national-leading 556 strikeouts. With a 1.21 ERA and strong pitching ability this year, she has kept the Minutewomen among the A-10 elite. As the season progresses, Plourdes effectiveness could have an effect on how the Maroon and White fare against other A-10 leaders in Temple and Fordham come playoff time.
The Rams (31-17, 12-4 A-10), who were picked to finish second in the conference (and who currently sit in second) boasts a confident offense and an ace comparable to Plourde in junior Jen Mineau. The Rams have four players with at least a .300 average that support Mineau, who is 16-7 with a 1.61 ERA to go along with 203 strikeouts in 148 innings.
Steve Levine can be reached at [email protected].
