The softball team is traveling to Clearwater, Florida this weekend along with 33 other teams from around the country for the University of Southern Florida Tournament.
The Bulls (7-10, 0-0 Mid-American Conference) head into the tournament after finishing 2-3 in the Madeira Beach Classic two weeks ago. The Bulls play five more games this weekend and can tie last year’s win-total of nine with two wins. Here is a breakdown of the upcoming games.
Vs. Florida A&M Rattlers (6-16)
The Bulls open up play against the Rattlers at 4:15 p.m. on Friday. The Rattlers have struggled on offense this season. They have been outscored 56-129 so far. The Rattlers have been playing poor defense with 50 errors on the season already and an inability to catch runners stealing. The Bulls do not steal often, but have been successful in their attempts, swiping bags at a near-70 percent rate . Look for aggression on the base paths from current stolen-base leader senior outfielder Leandra Jew and last year’s stolen-base leader sophomore catcher Jessica Goldyn.
Vs. North Florida Ospreys (13-13)
The Bulls play two games against the Ospreys this weekend. This will be their toughest matchup of the tournament. The first will be on Friday at 6:30 p.m. and again on Sunday at 1:30 p.m. to conclude the tournament. Junior pitcher Sydney Matzko leads the Ospreys with 1.56 ERA in 108 innings pitched. As a team, the Ospreys rely on pitching to win games with eight wins when scoring three runs or less. The Bulls’ offense will have to get on the board early and force Matzko out of the game to have a chance. Freshman utility player Anna Aguon and sophomore infielder Jenelle Martinez need to continue their hot starts from the plate, each batting .370 and higher. If junior pitcher and outfielder Ally Power can continue striking out batters at her current rate, the Bulls may be able to win both games against the Ospreys who have recorded less than five strikeouts in their last four games.
Vs. Army Black Knights (4-12)
The Black Knights have already endured a seven-game losing streak this season and are just 2-5 in their last seven games. The team hits for a poor .229 batting average and strike out over five and a half times per game. The Black Knights have only grounded into two double plays this season because of their inability to get consistent runners on base. From the mound, they have a team ERA of 4.70, but freshman pitcher Courtney Springman has kept it at 2.92 for the year, while pitching over half of the team’s innings. The Bulls’ offense should win this game. They play Saturday at 9:45 a.m.
Vs. Quinnipiac Bobcats (5-10)
The Bobcats struggled to find their groove early in their season and won only one of the team’s first nine games. The team has since won three out of the last five, including a close 2-1 victory over the Saint Joseph’s Hawks (8-7). The Bobcats’ pitching has stepped up recently, only allowing two earned runs or less in four out of their last five games. Their main problem has been fielding errors. The Bobcats lost their past two games due to mistakes in the field, including South Dakota State (14-7) scoring 10 runs in an inning with nine being unearned. Look for the Bulls to take advantage of this as the team has six wins when their opponents have made an error. The two play Saturday at 12:00 p.m.
Nathaniel Mendelson is a staff writer and can be reached at sports@ubspectrum.com.
