Not to take the College of the Holy Cross lightly, but the Boston University softball team does not expect to come home from Worcester today without another notch in the ‘W’ column.
The Terriers head into the game with a 16-11 record (5-3 America East) and a six-game winning streak, including a recent four-game sweep of the University of Delaware.
The Crusaders stand at 9-15, and have lost their last seven games, including four in a row against Lehigh University and two against Providence College yesterday evening.
“We’re expecting to win,” said senior pitcher Robyn King succinctly.
King can be forgiven for sounding more than confident. She was named America East Pitcher of the Week for her dominance of Delaware on Saturday, when she notched two wins and 16 strikeouts.
That said, King is not the likely starter for tomorrow’s game. She expects sophomore Tiffany Finateri to lead the Terriers on the mound. Finateri has pitched well and has impressed many with her toughness from the mound.
“I think it’s a good opportunity for [Finateri],” King said. “She’s going to be needed later in the season. It’s always better to get time in games rather than just practice.”
Finateri is currently 4-5 with a 3.04 earned run average. As the third starter, it will not only be important for her to win, but she must try and give the Terriers innings to avoid overworking King and sophomore Robyn Horrick, the other two BU hurlers.
The game will be played in Worcester, as Malvern Field is undergoing minor renovations to improve the condition of the infield.
King said BU will be experimenting a bit, taking the chance to move some people around in game situations without risking a conference loss.
“Position-wise, I think some people will see time in different places,” King said.
While they may change things around in the field a little bit, the Terriers do not want to change a thing at the plate, where they have witnessed success in recent games after a prolonged slump at the beginning of the season.
Junior third baseman Aryn Rangel hit especially well against Delaware on Saturday, going 4-for-6 with four runs batted in, two of them coming in the first game on a two-run blast that made the score 5-0 and effectively killed any chances the Blue Hens had at mounting a comeback.
Sophomore shortstop Kristin Knesek is the Terriers’ current hitting leader, with a .291 batting average. She excelled in the second game on Saturday, knocking in the winning run in extra innings with a double. She also came to play in the Monday games, going 2-for-4 with two RBIs over the two contests.
All that said, BU goes into the game against Holy Cross clearly favored, and if it continues its trend of combining dominant mound work with a potent offense, the Crusaders may not have a chance, and the Terriers could come away from Worcester riding high.
“We have more confidence after facing these teams in the middle of the week,” King said. “These are important games for us to win.”
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