The Binghamton softball team struggled to handle its competition this weekend, losing three of its five games in the Stetson Tournament.
“Overall, we were disappointed with the results,” BU head coach Michelle Burrell said. “We made some mistakes and I felt like we kind of gave away the games.”
The tournament started on a sour note for the Bearcats (7-7) as they dropped close games to Stetson (20-10) and Wagner (7-9) on Friday afternoon.
Against the hosts, senior designated player Griffin McIver came up big in the top of the seventh with a one-out home run over the right field fence to tie the game. Then, senior pitcher Cara Martin shut down the Hatters’ lineup in the bottom of the inning and forced the game into extra innings.
BU, however, failed to capitalize and was ultimately defeated after failing to score with the bases loaded in the top of the eighth. An RBI single for Stetson in the bottom of the frame secured an 8-7 victory.
Binghamton’s matchup versus Wagner brought little relief, as a stagnant Bearcat offense scraped together only three hits in the entire game. Senior first baseman Lisa Cadogan cracked open a scoreless tie in the bottom of the fourth inning with a solo home run to left field. Momentum quickly changed after that, as a Binghamton throwing error followed by two unearned runs in the seventh led to a 3-1 Wagner lead and eventual victory.
When asked where she thought her team fell short, Coach Burrell had a direct response.
“[We hit] too many pop flies and we weren’t putting the ball in play hard,” Burrell said. “Offensively, we need to do a better job of using all of the tools we have in our lineup and making adjustments to the pitchers early on in the game.”
Binghamton proceeded to make some clear adjustments at the plate in Saturday’s opener against University of Tennessee at Martin (15-10). Sophomore outfielder Jessica Rutherford sparked BU’s offense, collecting four hits, scoring three times and driving in three runs.
Junior shortstop Crysti Eichner contributed as well, driving in three runs. Senior outfielder Sydney Harbaugh finished 2-for-4 on the day while sophomore pitcher Sarah Miller improved to 4-4 on the season earning the 9-2 victory.
BU missed its opportunity for retribution in Saturday evening’s rematch against Wagner. Lackluster performances on offense and defense set the table for a 9-0-shutout loss. Harbaugh and Eichner had BU’s only two hits, while junior pitcher Shelby Donhauser fell to 1-1 on the season.
“I didn’t feel as though the pitchers we saw were that overpowering,” Burrell said. “[We have] good speed and power that we didn’t use. We didn’t work to make adjustments during the game and we weren’t putting enough pressure on their defense.”
On Sunday morning, Binghamton finished the weekend tournament on a high note, as Eichner led the Bearcats to their second win over UT Martin by a score of 6-5 in extra innings.
Setting the tone early with an RBI double in the first inning, Eichner drew a bases-loaded walk to tie the game during the top of the sixth. A sacrifice fly from Eichner in the eighth allowed freshman pinch runner Allison Pritchard to score the go-ahead run. Senior catcher Taylor Chaffee went 3-for-4 at the plate while Miller improved her record to 5-4.
Rutherford finished the tournament with a team-high .600 batting average, going 9-for-15 over three days.
“It was good to finish the way that we did,” Burrell said. “But overall, we hoped for better results.”
Binghamton is set to return to action at the Maryland Invitational on Friday. First pitch is set for 2:15 p.m. against North Dakota State from the Maryland Softball Stadium in College Park, Maryland.