The Fighting Scots softball team has had an up-and-down season so far. Over spring break, the team traveked to Fort Myers, Fla. to play 16 games against the likes of the University of New England, Salem State University, North Park University, Amherst College, Nichols College, Albright College, the University of Massachussetts-Dartmouth, The College at Brockport, St. Joseph’s College of Maine, Edgewood College, Hamilton College, Mt. Mary College, Ave Maria University and the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh.
Wooster (8-10) went .500 in Florida, including an 8-1 victory over New England and an 8-0 win over Mt. Mary. A 7-1 loss to Brockport was the only game in which the Scots lost by more than two runs.
The Scots also defeated Amherst 6-2, Albright 7-6, Edgewood 6-3, Hamilton 3-1 and 6-2 and Wisconsin-Oshkosh 5-4 in the second game of a doubleheader.
Pitcher Jenn Horton ’13 threw 52 strikeouts in 50 innings, recording an excellent 1.54 ERA. She threw nine strikeouts against both Nichols and St. Joseph’s and finished with a record of 3-5.
Allie Webb ’13 went 2-0, including a complete game against Edgewood. Gina Pirolozzi went 2-1, including a two-hit performance in the final four innings against a strong Wisconsin-Oshkosh team. The lineup combined for a 2.27 ERA on the trip.
Lauren Swineheart ’12 led the offense with a .388 batting average, two home runs, four doubles, two triples and three stolen bases. Rachel Frank ’12 batted .324 during the trip. Horton and Kelley Johnson ’13 had seven RBIs each, while Danielle Grooms ’14 added batted six runs in.
Johnson hit two home runs, with Horton, Pirolozzi and Caitlin Gaffney ë11 each hitting one. The Scots also stole 14 bases in 14 attempts, after only stealing 19 last season.
The team had a rough go after its return to Ohio. Wooster traveled to Otterbein College (9-5) in Westerville, Ohio last Friday for a doubleheader.
In the first game, the Cardinals’ Brooke Albright scored on an unearned run in the second inning. The Scots countered in the third inning when Swinehart hit a three-run homer that sent Erica Villa ’13 and Rachel Frank ’12 home to give them a 3-1 lead.
Horton retired three Otterbein batters in a row to end the third inning, and Gwen Davis ’12 scored on an error to give the Scots a 4-1 lead in the fourth inning. Albright hit a two-run homer at the bottom of the inning to cut the Wooster lead to 4-3.
Wooster tried to pull away in the fifth inning, but two women were left on base, and the Cardinals scored on an unearned run at the bottom of the inning.
Wooster had no hits in the sixth and Callie Studebaker’s solo shot gave Otterbein a 5-4 lead that would hold for a victory.
The Scots only got four hits in the second game, as the Cardinals’ Kelsey Long pitched a shutout. Otterbein scored on RBIs in the third, fifth and sixth innings to win 3-0 in spite of Pirolozzi throwing four strikeouts.
Wooster’s Monday doubleheader against Baldwin-Wallace College was postponed due to rain, and the team played its first two home games of the season against Heidelberg University yesterday after press time.
Tomorrow, the Scots will travel to Delaware, Ohio, opening NCAC play against Ohio Wesleyan University (10-6).