Softball Games of the Week 4/10 – 4/16
#6 Washington vs. #15 Oregon - Tuesday & Wednesday (4/10 3pm & 5pm, 4/11 12pm Pacific, Eugene OR)
UW had a bit of a rough weekend, losing two of three to Arizona. The Huskies have lost five of their last six, three of those to Cal, falling to fifth place at 4-5 in the Pac-12. Coach Tarr’s teams have historically been able to regroup during tough times and the club will need to put this stretch behind them quickly, with six more conference games in the next six days. UW is hitting .325 as a team and were shutout last weekend for just the second time in 2012. With a double header on Tuesday, Kaitlin Inglesby will need some help from the rest of the staff to get the 33-6 Huskies back on track. The Ducks are third in the Pac-12 at 4-4, coming off a series road win at Stanford. Oregon has seven batters hitting above .300 and 10 with at least one home run. Jessica Moore (17-5) and, Karissa Hovinga (7-3) will likely both get work on Tuesday. In this format, Washington’s advantage in pitching depth should have a significant impact on the outcome.
#18 Texas A&M vs. #25 Baylor - Tuesday (4/10 6:30pm Central, Waco, TX)
The Aggies had their way with Baylor a couple of weeks back in College Station. Mel Dumezich allowed just three hits in a 6-1 win that was not that close. The Bears have rarely played well in Aggieland in recent years, but have won the matchup at home the last two years, both on walk off plays. A&M is currently fourth in the Big 12 at 7-3, with two wins over Missouri and a head scratching loss to Iowa State. The Bears are sixth at 3-7. The bunch from Waco had won four in a row before getting drilled on Sunday by Kansas. Baylor will need to bring their A-game to continue the home win streak versus Texas A&M.
#17 Stanford vs. #19 UCLA - Tuesday & Wednesday (4/10 5pm & 7:30pm, 4/11 12pm Pacific, Los Angeles, CA)
The Cardinal are just 2-7 in the Pac-12, in eighth place. They have lost all three of their conference series, the latest to Oregon at home. They have lost seven of their last 10. UCLA was just swept at Arizona State, losing twice by run rule. The Bruins are 2-4 and seventh in league. Arizona State held the number one hitting team in the country (.375 before the weekend) to just over .200 in the three games. The Bruins staff ERA of 2.95 is uncharacteristically high and could present problems the rest of the way in the conference against some quality hitting teams. Stanford’s Teagan Gerhart has a majority of her club’s innings and a 2.32 ERA. She will be tested on Tuesday during the double header. UCLA’s deeper pitching staff should be to their advantage.
#12 Tennessee vs. #22 LSU - Friday, Saturday, Sunday (4/13 6pm, 4/14 12pm, 4/15 4pm Central, Knoxville, TN)
The Volunteers are fourth in the SEC at 13-6, fresh off a road sweep of Auburn. LSU started slowly, but had won 12 consecutive before losing to Alabama Friday. On Saturday, the Tigers handed the Tide their second conference loss 3-2. LSU is 11-3 and third in the conference. Rachel Fico and Brittany Mack have both done well in the circle. Fico is sporting a 0.81 ERA and a 14-4 record. She has fanned 121 in just over 120 innings. Mack has 120 strikeouts in 106 innings. The offense will need to improve for the Tigers to stay near the top of the SEC. As a team they are hitting just .254, with four hitters at about .300. Conversely, Tennessee is hitting close to .300 as a team averaging over five runs per game. Ellen Renfroe continues to be tough with a 1.03 ERA. A Fico / Renfroe matchup, on paper, would appear to set up for some low scoring affairs. We will see.
#8 Oklahoma vs. #18 Texas A&M - Friday, Saturday, Sunday (4/13 7pm, 4/14 3pm, 4/15 12pm Central, College Station, TX)
The Sooners lead the Big 12 at 8-2, suffering surprising one-run losses to Baylor and Texas Tech in league play. This matchup with A&M will be their first conference set against one of the top Big 12 teams. The top of the OU lineup is scary. Jessica Shults is hitting .414 with 9 home runs. Freshman Lauren Chamberlain has a .389 average and a 19 home runs, second nationally. Keilani Ricketts also has nine long balls. In the circle OU has two outstanding lefties. Ricketts is 18-4, striking out over 11 per game. Michelle Gascoigne is 13-1 with just under 11 strikeouts a game. Texas A&M’s Dumezich, like Ricketts, tends to work down in the zone. If the staffs are on their game, expect A&M’s lefties to struggle and some tight low scoring affairs.
#1 Cal vs. #9 Arizona - Friday, Saturday, Sunday (4/13 3pm, 4/14 1pm, 4/15 12pm Pacific, Berkeley, CA)
The Golden Bears continue to be dominant in every phase of the game. First in the Pac-12 standings, they are 9-0 in the league and 36-1 overall. Jolene Henderson and Val Arioto have been lights out in the circle with ERA’s of 1.11 and 1.20 respectively. The club has a .348 batting average, fourth in the country and 57 home runs. Arioto could easily be described as the best player in the game. Beside her excellence in the circle, she is hitting .427 has 16 home runs, 52 walks, an on-base of .645 and slugging percentage of 1.073. If that is not enough, she has five teammates with five or more bombs. Arizona is currently sixth in the conference at 4-5, but has won their last two series against Stanford and Washington. Shelby Babcock and Kenzie Fowler have continued to improve as the season has gone along. The Wildcat batting average is .296, which is not up to Arizona standards. Couple the less than robust offense with a team 2.51 ERA and it is easy to see why the Wildcats have not generated their typical results. Cal will be a solid test for Arizona and they will need to play their best to stay in the games.
#21 Florida State vs. Georgia Tech - Sunday, Monday (4/15 12pm & 2pm, 4/16 7pm Eastern, Tallahassee, FL)
This a pretty big series with respect to determining the ACC regular season champ. Florida St. leads the conference at 10-2, having already played Virginia Tech and North Carolina, the third and fourth place teams in the standings. The Seminoles are 35-8 overall, hitting .277 with a team ERA of 1.21. Monica Perry is 16-4 with a 1.22 ERA. She has 158 strikeouts in 131 innings. Lacey Waldrop has 111 innings, a 1.13 ERA and a 15-3 record in the circle. Georgia Tech is right behind the Seminoles at 8-3. They have won eight straight, six in ACC play. The Yellow Jackets stumbled to open ACC play losing three to Virginia. Hope Rush carries the load for Georgia Tech at 18-10 with a 2.19 ERA. Her team will need to generate some significant offense to help her through on double header Sunday.
#6 Washington vs. #19 UCLA - Friday, Saturday, Sunday (4/13 6pm, 4/14 4pm, 4/15 12pm Pacific, Seattle, WA)
The Huskies and Bruins both have tough mid-week series that will tax their pitching staffs. The one game a day format here may allow Washington to lean on Inglesby throughout. These teams know each other well. Expect some offensive fireworks in these games.
