With two-thirds of regular season conference play now in tow, the Boston University softball team will partake in a trifecta of doubleheaders against New England opponents over the course of the next week. The University of Rhode Island will act as BU’s first challenger of this stint when the Rams travel to the BU Softball Field on Thursday.
BU coach Shawn Rychcik said his approach to the non-conference stretch would be similar to any other.
“There’s a reality that if [a game] isn’t in our conference then it doesn’t affect our standings,” Rychcik said. “But, by the same token, it affects our record, it affects our statistics, it affects our momentum and how we’re feeling about how we’re playing. We’re going to approach it to win two games tomorrow.”
Last year, the Terriers (25-13, 8-3 America East) swept the Rams (18-22) in the two-game series that took place in Kingston, R.I. URI entered the series with a record of 3-34, and the Terriers had little trouble taking the first game by a score of 9-2. However, the Rams managed to extend the second matchup of the series an extra inning when it pulled off a four-run seventh inning. BU ultimately dug up three more runs in the eighth and escaped from the struggling Rams.
This season, a significantly improved URI team will enter Boston with an offense that is comparable to that of BU. The Rams are batting a .274 on a total of 284 hits, whereas the Terriers have accrued a .271 average on 287 hits. URI has also produced more power on offense than the Terriers, as they have launched 25 homers this season in comparison to BU’s 19.
Sophomore right fielder Jayme Mask leads the Terriers with a .351 average and a .423 on-base percentage. Mask also has 15 stolen bases so far this season, also number one for BU. For the Rams, senior Courtney Prendergast leads the offensive charge with a .381 average. The infielder also leads her team in doubles with 12 and home runs with eight. It is likely that the difference in today’s games will come down to run prevention.
In the categories of pitching and fielding, BU far outperforms URI. The Terrier pitching rotation maintains a 2.48 ERA this year, while the Rams presently hold a 3.93 mark. Similarly, BU’s defense has been more effective (.975 fielding percentage) than that of URI (.955).
“What I really want us to do is have good pitching and good defense, and the offense will take care of itself,” Rychcik said. “I just asked the team to stay focused today, and they all understand how those games could get lost. We could end up in a tight game, but I’d like to see us with an opportunity to swing the bats and to exploit one of their weaknesses.”
Each team will enter the match with a considerable amount of momentum built from the result of their most recent respective games. BU blanked Ivy League conference leader Harvard University on Tuesday, and URI took down state rival Providence College in a doubleheader on Wednesday.
Rychcik said he wants to make sure his team does not become too complacent about its present status.
“I said to the girls, ‘We’ve gained a lot, we’ve played good softball. Don’t give it away,’” Rychcik said. “’Don’t give anything that we’ve worked hard for away because we showed up and we weren’t focused and concentrated.’”
“So, from that standpoint, I feel pretty good that we will have good focus and a good attack tomorrow.”
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