Softball tackles Rams, sweeps doubleheader

After only ten innings of play on Thursday, the Boston University softball team managed to add a pair of wins to its record, and a myriad of offensive achievements to the stat sheets of several players. BU’s sweep of the University of Rhode Island came by virtue of similar 8-0 victories that each only lasted five innings due to the NCAA mercy rule.

BU coach Shawn Rychcik summed up his team’s performance as a “good brand of softball” after the game.

“Good pitching – outstanding pitching – no-hitter and a one-hitter followed up by some real good defense and offense,” Rychcik said. “That’s the kind of softball that we were expecting to play today, and the kind we’d like to get every day.”

The no-hitter was delivered by the arm of BU ace sophomore Holli Floetker in the first game. Floetker walked one and hit a pair of batters, but struck out seven over the course of her five hitless innings. Junior Whitney Tuthill was responsible for the one-hitter as she finished her five innings having walked zero, and striking out seven.

Nearly the entire Terrier squad (27-13) was given the chance to participate in the back-to-back drubbings of the Rams (18-24). Rychcik made the decision to give his typical pinch-runners and other role-players a chance to bat during the second match.

“They work hard,” said Rychcik of his typical non-starters such as senior Kayla Kruper, sophomore Alyssa Barsanti and freshman Kendra Meadows. “They contribute to the team in a lot of different ways, and they’ve gotten to be at different roles. They’ve helped the team in other aspects but to get some at-bats for themselves . . . it’s good to see.”

Sophomore Chelsea Kehr, who has participated in slightly more than half of BU’s games thus far, had a particularly favorable day. The designated hitter went 2-for-3 with four RBIs and a home run on the day. Classmate Jayme Mask also stood out during the two games as she had four hits and 3 RBIs, including a walk-off three-run triple in the first game. Meadows drove in the game-winning hit for the latter match when she brought classmate Mandy Fernandez around with a double in the fourth.

In both games, the Terriers drew blood from their opponents early and effectively. The team put up three runs in the first inning of the first match when sophomore Megan Volpano homered to bring Mask, herself and senior left fielder Erica Casacci home. Kehr’s blast came in the first inning of the second match, and accounted for three of the five total runs the Terriers gained during that frame.

Rychcik said he valued the effect scoring early has on the players and teams.

“It takes the pressure of us, and puts the pressure on them,” Rychcik said. “Both pitchers went out and threw zeros right off the bat, and that gave us an opportunity to come out and say ‘okay, we’re going to win that inning,’ and in both games we put up runs. It kind of creates a good feeling in the lineup. It takes a little pressure off the pitchers, knowing that they’re not out there being absolutely mistake-free.”

These two wins over URI were the Terriers’ eighth and ninth shutouts of the season, and their second and third consecutive, following a 1-0 victory over Harvard earlier this week. Rychcik says that pitching is the primary reason for his team’s run prevention this year, yet he also gave credit to offense and defense.

“Pitching is the number one reason [for the team’s shutouts], and defense right behind that,” Rychcik said. “Then when you start putting some runs on the board, you just kind of knock down the morale of the [opposing] team.”