Sunny Ft. Myers, Florida was the host of the Gene Cusic Collegiate Classic. While soaking up the sun and the sandy beaches, both the baseball and the softball teams competed against several Division III schools across the country.
Since returning from Florida, the softball team is now 5-6 overall while the baseball team stands at 2-7. Due to traveling problems, both teams’ first games were cancelled.
The softball opened up their season against Montclair State, Elms and Franklin Pierce on March 18. PSU dropped their first game, won the second and dropped their final game of the day. The Panthers split the rest of their trip, defeating Lawrence, Bowdoin, Thomas and SUNY New Paltz. Plymouth dropped their games to Western New England, Trinity (Conn.) and Buffalo State.
“I am very pleased with what we did, but we have a lot of room for improvement, we got to be more consistent,” said head coach Bruce Addison. “I think we have a lot of depth at pitching. I think we accomplished what we wanted to do. Our record doesn’t show how we performed.”
In their 11 games played, PSU totaled a .245 batting average (BA) while teams hit .256 against them. PSU had three players who hit over .300 while four players hit a .250 BA or better. Junior Danielle Normand led PSU with a .286 BA, scoring 10 RBI and smacking three home runs. Junior co-captain Lori Pettengill contributed with four RBI. Sophomore Rachel Pothier chipped in with three RBI while first-years Sammi Romano, Becca DiPetro and sophomore Amanda Parshley all contributed with solo home runs.
Against their opponents, PSU scored 32 runs while opponents faired better with 52 runs. Plymouth was also to knock 71 hits while PSU pitching scattered 75 hits.
The pitching staff saw the introduction of three new pitchers to the rotation. The staff as a whole produced a 4.35 ERA (Earned Run Average). Sophomore co-captain Courtney MacFarland went 3-1 with a 1.35 ERA. She scattered 23 hits allowing four earned runs while striking out nine. First-years Kat Roland, Ashley Pinkham and Beth Moretti all showed strong showings in their first collegiate appearances.
“We came together really well,” said MacFarland. “There was nobody who played individually. The defense and pitching really went hand-in-hand.”
The softball team will travel to UMass Dartmouth in their first Little East Conference match-up of the season on Saturday afternoon and will host Eastern Connecticut State University in their home opener on April 7th.
After traveling situations plagued the team, PSU opened their season with a loss against Haverford, a game that went into extra innings. The Panthers split a doubleheader with Fredonia State and Kalamazoo before being swept by Trinity (Conn.) and Amherst.
“I am pretty optimistic about their play,” said head coach Dennis McManus. “Saw some things I liked and didn’t like. They lost three crucial extra-inning games.”
Together as a team, the Panthers batted .300 with six players hitting over the .300 mark. PSU scored 51 runs while opponents scored 79 runs. Plymouth had 88 hits while opponents smacked 111 hits.
Junior Brandon Hodge led the Panthers with a .519 BA while compiling 14 hits and scoring seven RBI. Senior Craig Carpenter had 12 hits with nine RBI while sophomore Jay Kleponis chipped in with 13 hits and eight RBI.
The pitching staff saw 11 pitchers throw off the mound. As a whole, the staff compiled an 8.32 ERA while allowing 61 earned runs in 66 innings pitched. The staff struck out 46 batters and had one complete game.
“I think the weakness is the lack of experience at the collegiate level,” said McManus. “Offensively, we are okay. We hit .300 for the week, so that’s great. I think our goal is to play the game it needs to be played.”
The Panthers will travel to Babson, Eastern Connecticut, Saint Joseph’s (Maine), Keene State, Becker, Western Connecticut and Middlebury before hosting River College in their home opener on April 12.
“Our record doesn’t really reflect how we played,” said junior co-captain John Pogorzelski. “We had a few that’s that went to extra innings. We really came together well. As we keep working hard the rest of season will come together in a positive way.”