Megan Zerrer
Contributing Writer
The Wooster women’s softball team played two home games this weekend against Case Western Reserve University. Unfortunately, the women walked away defeated in both games. Wooster pitchers Maddy Chase ’18 and Jenna Kendall ’17 played well, keeping the Fighting Scots competitive, but in the end it wasn’t quite enough.
The Spartans (18-7), who entered the opener with an average of 8.4 runs, only managed to score three runs against Kendall. She scattered 10 hits, fanned four and walked none. Additionally, she dominated the duel with Case’s Annie Wennerberg, who entered the game with a .477 batting average and 13 home runs. She went 0-3 against Kendall and struck out twice.
The ladies had the opportunity to take the lead early in the game, as the women loaded the bases with no outs during the second inning. But Spartan pitcher Wennerberg put on the heat and struck out the next three batters, stealing the Scots’ golden opportunity to add runs to the scoreboard.
The women struggled to stop Case from scoring, eventually giving the Spartans the 3-1 lead that them to victory. Demi Hart ’15 finally managed to put the Scots on the board, scoring the lone run in the bottom of the seventh inning after singling to left field to start the frame.
The second game followed in much the same pattern as the first, with Chase giving the Wooster women every chance she could. Chase allowed a two-run double in the first inning. But once she settled in, she became nearly un-hittable, surrendering only three hits throughout the next five frames.
The Scots once again had an opportunity to light up the scoreboard, this time during the third inning when Hart led off with a double, followed by Skye Patterson ’15 and Paige Goldberg ’15, who both added singles to load up the bases. Unfortunately, the Spartans once again deterred their chances, and took home the 6-0 victory.
Despite suffering two losses, the team had some outstanding individual performances for Wooster. Hart went 3-for-5 with two doubles. Goldberg and teammate Stephanie Little ’17 each claimed two hits. Meanwhile, Carly Schoenstein ’15 hit a deep shot to center field that had the potential to clear the fence if an ill-timed wind gust hadn’t swept through. Schoenstein tacked on several impressive defensive plays at shortstop to round out her achievements during the two games.
The Scots plan to prepare for their upcoming games by “having more challenges at [their] hitting stations in practice,” commented Patterson. Schoenstein echoed Patterson’s statements, adding, “Every batter could have worked the counts more. … We need to focus on hitting good pitches.”
The women maintain high hopes for the rest of the season, as they prepare for upcoming games and turn their attention to conference time. Schoenstein commented, “…our team chemistry is a lot better than it was last year. We just need to believe in each other, and have fun while playing ball!”
The ladies played four more home games after press time. The first two games were against Allegheny College and the next two were against Mount Union University.