For the Buffalo softball team, spring break could not end fast enough. The Bulls began their weeklong road trip on Friday, March 9 in Tallahassee, Fla. at the Florida State Invitational Tournament.
The road trip started on a sour note, as the Bulls lost all five of their tournament games in a three-day period.
"Our biggest thing right now is keeping their confidence, keep them believing they can play and they can win," said Buffalo head coach Marie Curran. "We're in a lot of games right now and I feel if we win one or two wins in a row then we can get their confidence where it needs to be."
In the first game, the Bulls faced off against the No. 21 team in the nation and eventual tournament champion, the Georgia Bulldogs. Buffalo dropped the contest 9-0, while managing only two hits in the game, both by sophomore outfielder Erin Zilka.
Later in the afternoon, the Bulls faced off against Western Carolina. The Bulls lost 8-5 despite taking an early lead. Buffalo went up 2-0 in the bottom of the second inning, before letting the Catamounts retake the lead with a four run fourth inning.
After closing to within a run of Western Carolina, the Bulls let the game slip away, allowing four more runs to Western in the top of the seventh inning. Buffalo tied to rally in the bottom half of the seventh inning, scoring twice to pull within three of the Catamounts before coming up short by a score of 8-5.
Saturday, the double header action continued with the results staying the same. The Bulls began the day by dropping their first game 3-0 to Southern Illinois. Sophomore pitcher Dana Carter pitched five innings, allowing just three runs on seven hits. Freshman relief pitcher Sharon Barr held Southern Illinois scoreless over the last two innings, allowing only one hit to the Salukis.
After the narrow defeat in the early Saturday game, the Bulls came out hot against Florida A&M. They held a lead for most of the contest before a late Rattlers' rally downed the Bulls by a score of 9-7. Buffalo finished the contest with six errors leading to three unearned runs for Florida A&M.
In the final game of the tournament the Bulls gave yet another valiant effort, only to come up short against Appalachian State by a score of 5-3. Buffalo trailed 3-0 for most of the contest until a sixth inning Bull rally tied the game at 3-3.
After a couple days rest the Bulls traveled to Clearwater, Fla. for a March 14 double-header against Boston University. Overwhelmed in each contest, Buffalo failed to score a run in either game against the Terriers, falling 9-0 and 7-0.
In their final tournament of the break, the Bulls picked up their second victory of the season at the University of South Florida Speedline Tournament in Tampa, Fla.
In the second game of the Saturday doubleheader, the Bulls faced off against Ivy League power Princeton. Despite keeping the contest close the entire way, the Bulls were unable to hold off Princeton in the end, allowing four runs in the top of the sixth inning to break the game open. Two errors by the Bulls along with four hits from Princeton accounted for four Tiger runs in the inning, putting Princeton up for good at 7-2.
Sunday, the Bulls concluded their play down south for the season. In the final game of the Speedline Tournament, seven innings proved not to be enough to decide the match between Buffalo and the Rhode Island Rams.
Senior infielder Colleen Greene opened up the scoring in the bottom of the first inning with a two run home run, her first of the season. Buffalo continued to hold its 2-0 lead before the Rams began to chip away in the fifth inning. Runs in the top of the fifth and sixth innings by Rhode Island tied the game and sent the contest to extra innings.
After each team scored once in the eighth inning, the Rams came out strong in the ninth, scoring four runs on three hits to the lead 7-3. An RBI single from Greene brought the Bulls to within three runs, but Buffalo would get no closer, falling 7-4.
Following this 1-10 road trip, the Bulls record stands at 2-20 with one tournament remaining before Mid-American Conference play begins March 30.
"You're on the road for 10 days," said Buffalo head coach Marie Curran. "You have the same schedule as 21 people. You're always excited to come home. It's nice to get back to your friends and roommates back on campus. The girls are happy to be back."
After previously playing in New Mexico, Texas and Florida, the Bulls will now travel up north for good, beginning Friday in Bloomington, Ind. at the Indiana University Classic. Buffalo will face Illinois-Chicago in the first contest, followed by games against Eastern Michigan and the host school Indiana.
Photo: Courtesy of Laron Fomby
