With so many games in a college softball season, developing consistency often serves as a challenge early on.
Now 26 games into the 2012 season, the Massachusetts softball team is still searching for that consistency at the plate.
This was evident in UMass’ weekend series against Dayton, when the Minutewomen (16-10, 4-0 Atlantic 10) came away with a pair of victories by a combined score of 16-2.
The combined score is not a clear indicator of the lack of consistency, however, as UMass had to fight to the end to pull out the, 3-1, victory in game one – a game in which it left 10 runners stranded on base.
Game 2 turned out to be a completely different story as a 10-run second inning lifted the Minutewomen to a 13-1 triumph, despite leaving eight runners one base.
“I think everyone is in the right mindset it’s just a matter of stringing hits together at the right time,” said junior outfielder Cyndil Matthew, who leads the team with a .420 batting average. “That is something we’re able to do much better in Game 1 than in Game 2.”
This inconsistency goes further back than this past weekend. The Minutemen have a dominant pitcher in Sara Plourde, who gives her team an opportunity every time she steps on the mound. However, far too often, Plourde does not receive enough run support from her offense. UMass posts a .266 team which has come back t hurt them, particularly in the team’s 10 loses thus far.
In those loses, only once have the Minutewomen pushed more than two runs across the plate, which came in their most recent, 13-5, loss to Northwestern on March 20.
Matthew feels confident about the direction the team is heading in offensively despite the scoring troubles in the early goings.
“We just have to take this motivation and confidence that we have here [and] keep rolling throughout the season and get better and better,” said Matthew.
One player who has provided an unexpected spark at the plate has been Plourde.
Plourde, UMass’ all-time strikeout leader, hit her third home run in the last five games with a solo shot to lead off the third inning of Game 1. The long ball gave the Minutewomen a 1-0 lead that they would not relinquish. She got the job done on the mound as well with a 17-strikeout performance.
She also scored two runs, collected fours hits and knocked in two runs over the weekend, to go along with a pair of wins on the mound.
In her 16 at-bats this season, Plourde is hitting .500 with five runs, eight hits, three home runs, seven RBIs and 18 total bases. The Bristol, Conn., native hopes that this small sample will give her more chances to bat for the remainder of the season.
“I’ve always wanted to keep hitting since I’ve been here, but haven’t had the opportunity because of injuries to myself and other pitchers,” said Plourde. “When you have one pitcher, I understand coaches have a concept of not letting their one pitcher get hurt, but I never stopped practicing hitting because I kept saying I wanted to keep hitting, and was always asking [UMass coach Elaine Sortino] if I could hit.
“I kept practicing hitting and stayed ready just in case I got the chance,” said Plourde.
The road ahead
The Minutewomen will now play three straight non-conference games in three days, starting with a trip to Storrs, Conn., for a tilt with Connecticut on Tuesday afternoon.
The Huskies (13-14, 3-3 Big East) enter the game as losers of their last three games after being swept by Notre Dame in South Bend, Ind.
What may play in UConn’s favor, however, is its undefeated mark at home thus far. The Huskies have shown signs of dominance at home despite only being three games into their home schedule, as they have outscored opponents 26-13.
UConn has three hitters batting over .300 this season, including senior catcher Amy Vaughan and junior outfielder Marissa Guches, who are hitting .373 and .369, respectively. Vaughan leads the team in both home runs (nine) and RBIs (29), while her and Guches are tied for the team lead in hits with 31 apiece.
Junior flamethrower Kiki Saveriano is likely to be Plourde’s counterpart in the circle. Saveriano has gone 8-7 with a 3.28 earned run average and 68 strikeouts in her 15 starts.
Neither Plourde nor Matthew are concerned going into the contest, despite it being the first of three games in three straight days, which also includes a trip back to Amherst for a home game against Boston College.
“It’ll be fun,” said Matthew. “It’s just like playing in a tournament.”
“When you play five [games] in three days or seven in four days [during the early-season tournaments] it becomes normal,” Plourde added.
First pitch for Tuesday’s matchup is set for 4 p.m.
Nick Canelas can be reached at [email protected] and followed on Twitter @MDC_Canelas.
