Anthony Jacuzzi
The Washington University softball team, in usual fashion, had a wild weekend on the diamond. On Thursday they pounded the Ozarks College 7-0 allowing just one hit. The hitting stars for the Bears were the usual top three in the lineup, Kristin Harrer, Victoria Ramsey, and Elizabeth Swary.
Each gathered two hits and Swary, in the elite spot in the lineup, drove in three runs, enough to stifle the Ozarks. Ramsey also excelled on the hill, hurling all seven innings without a breath of a rally while striking out nine. The Bear’s defense was almost flawless, committing only one miscue in the field compared to Ozark’s six.
Friday afternoon brought Gustavas Adolphus College and a much more difficult matchup. After steamrolling OC on Thursday, the Bears had their work cut out for them. WU fell behind 2-1 in the second inning but mounted rallies in the bottom half of the inning and in the fifth to pull ahead 3-2. Ramsey, the team’s star pitcher, was once again brilliant, able to shut down the Gusties after a couple early runs. Swary was once again the offensive hero, plating two of the three runs.
On Sunday, in a Jekyl and Hyde doubleheader, the Bears clocked Hendrix College 17-0 but struggled offensively against Simpsons College, dropping the game 1-0.
Against Hendrix, the Bears pulled off one of the greatest offensive shows of the season. 17 hits and five innings later WU had demoralized the Warriors. In just the first inning alone, the Bears scored 13 runs and never relinquished. The game was called after five innings due to the comedic disparity.
Against Simpson, the Bears ran out of slugging gas. Lori Fehlker gave the Bears another inspiring performance from the mound, going the full seven and allowing just the one run on five hits. The Bears matched the hitting output of the Storm, but could not push across a run, falling by the slimmest of margins. Although this game was a tough one to drop, the loss will not affect their University Athletic Assocation (UAA)
standing.
Since the UAA does not grant automatic bids, the Bears must improve upon a competitive 13-9 record if they want to have a chance at a tournament bid.
Meghan Forgy, a sophomore outfielder, believes the Bears are past the hardest part of their schedule, but games against teams like Illinois Wesleyan should keep WU on their toes before entering tournament territory.
“I don’t think we have any specific weaknesses, we are pretty much all strengths,” said Forgy. “Any weaknesses we have are minor individual problems and are not overall team weaknesses.”
When asked about Saturday’s wild doubleheader Forgy said, ” It is tough to take, but I think we will be able to handle it better than most teams.”
The Bears are obviously confident and believe that a postseason bid is definitely in the near future. If WU keeps up the level of play we saw this weekend against Hendrix College, it could be a fruitful May.
Contact Sal at sal.taliercio@studlife.com