The Boston University softball team was able to earn the victory in its first home game of the 2015 season on Wednesday afternoon as it beat the University of Massachusetts Amherst by a score of 10-6.
With the win against the Minutemen (14-21), the Terriers (13-24, 4-8 Patriot League) have now won each of their last four games and the reason is simple — they’re scoring runs. It’s the point of the game, yet it’s been a weak spot in Terriers’ game so far this season. In their first 10 contests in 2015, BU averaged just 2.5 runs per game, scoring more than four just once. The team didn’t score more than five runs in a game until it plated seven against Long Island University Brooklyn on March 7, nearly a month into the season.
Despite the lack of runs early on, the Terriers were capitalizing on their opportunities — they just didn’t have too many. In its first four games, the team went 7-for-20 (.350) with runners in scoring position.
Now, the Terriers have reached double digits in scoring in three of their last four games. The team has not only been able to improve on its production with runners in scoring production, but they’ve been able to get more runners over as well. How? Speed.
In their first four games, the Terriers only attempted to steal twice, getting caught one of those times. In its last four, including its most recent against UMass, BU is averaging 3.75 steals per game, thanks to the top of the lineup in sophomore centerfielder Moriah Connolly, freshman right fielder Emma Wong and sophomore shortstop Brittany Younan, who leads the team with 22 steals. In those four games, no Terrier has been caught stealing.
BU coach Kathryn Gleason emphasized the importance of stealing bases after Wednesday’s game against the Minutemen.
“I think we have the speed, so we got to use it, and to get them into scoring position is huge for us,” she said.
When discussing this further, Gleason mentioned freshman third baseman Kaitlin Sahlinger by name.
“[Sahlinger] put the ball in play and moved the runner to third, and then the next pitch we get a hit, so just moving them into scoring position is really important for us,” she said. “With our top three — Connolly, Wong and Younan — in the lineup getting on all the time, they definitely are in a good position to steal and get over to second base.”
With more runners getting into scoring position, the Terriers have been able to capitalize, hitting .379 with runners in scoring position going back to Saturday. The only anomaly in that data set is the second game of last Saturday’s doubleheader against Lafayette College in which the team went just 1-for-8 with runners in scoring position. That game incidentally was the only one in their last four in which they didn’t score 10 or more runs.
While the bats have certainly been effective lately, there is still room for improvement. On Wednesday in particular, the Terriers left nine runners on base. In the bottom of the third innning, the Terriers threatened with a big inning after junior first baseman Lauren Hynes reached first on catcher’s interference, loading the bases with no outs. The next three batters were retired almost effortlessly. Going forward, Gleason said she wants her team to keep scoring more runs.
“We want to score every inning,” she said. “We want to answer when they score and get the momentum back on our side, and maybe that was a focus being at home today finally.”
