Fresh off its first Ivy win of the season, the softball team traveled to Storrs, Conn., to take on UConn in a midweek matchup. Unfortunately, Brown could not keep the momentum alive from last Sunday's win, as the Huskies chewed up the Bears in a 7-3 loss.
UConn (20-16) struck first in the bottom of the first inning with doubles by Justyne Roy and Danielle Del Ponte. Although the Bears (6-20) gave up an early lead, they fought back in the top of the second with a run of their own. Andrea Browne '10 singled up the middle to get on base and Linnea Anderson '08 drove in the game-tying run with a double to right-center. Browne was successful at getting on base for the Bears all afternoon as she went two-for-three at the plate.
"As a slapper, I was focused on staying relaxed and hitting the ball through the infield and getting on base, then relying on my teammates to gain RBIs," Browne said.
However, in the bottom of the third the Huskies would regain the lead on a two-run double by Allie Gendron. In the fourth the Huskies broke the game open with four runs, widening the gap to 7-1.
"I thought we also misplayed a few fly balls that allowed UConn to extend a couple innings (the fourth inning in particular)," said Head Coach Andrea Enabenter-Omidiji. "Defensively, we have to close the door with two strikes and two outs, and we have to stop extending innings."
With a large hole to dig themselves out of, the Bears continued to play hard. Brown was unable to score a run in the fourth or fifth innings but began to heat up in the sixth. The rally began off the bat of Emily Chaddock '11, who singled, followed by Browne getting on base for the second time in the game with a fielder's choice. Kelsey Wilson '09 reached base on an error by the UConn second baseman and Anderson singled down the right-field line to score Browne from second. The two-out rally continued with Maria Macrina '11 hitting a single to left-center to bring in the Bears' third run of the game. The Bears tried to keep the inning alive but ultimately ran out of steam as the game ended in a 7-3 loss, despite Bruno's eight hits.
Both Browne and Anderson had solid showings at the plate going two-for-three. Browne scored two runs for the Bears and Anderson had two RBIs on the afternoon.
The team's pitching, which has been the solid backbone of the team all year, struggled on Wednesday, as three different pitchers faced the UConn lineup. Michelle Moses '09 started the game and left in the bottom of the third after giving up five hits, allowing three runs and striking out one batter. In relief of Moses was Kristie Chin '11, who was unable to stop the bleeding. Chin gave up four runs and would exit the game after 1 1/3 innings of work. The final Brown pitcher of the night was Jessica Iwasaki '10. Iwasaki had more success against the tough Huskie lineup, giving up only two hits against the eight batters she faced.
Using three pitchers in one game has been unusual for the Bears this season, but Enabenter-Omidiji expects this to happen more often toward the end of the year.
"We have an idea of what our pitchers' strengths and weaknesses are and we are trying to change things up before the opponent finds out what our pitchers' strengths and weaknesses are," she said.
The Bears look to get back on track this weekend as they travel to Cambridge, Mass., to take on Harvard in a four-game set.
"We've been focusing on producing runs and I think that if we bring what we've worked on and accomplish it in the games this weekend, we'll be very successful," Anderson said.
