Last weekend, the Bradley softball team (13-18) visited Drake (25-9), that has beaten the Braves in their previous six meetings. The last win for Bradley occurred in 2015.
Drake started off scorching hot in Friday’s opener, scoring seven runs in the bottom of the first inning on seven hits. The Braves then put two runs on the board when senior Maria Schroeder reached base on a Drake error.
The Bulldogs scored three more times to seal the easy 10-2 win on just 10 hits. Schroeder said early miscues and tough pitching contributed to the loss.
“[Drake] jumped on us in the first inning and we made a lot of defensive mistakes,” Schroeder said. “They took advantage of those. With their pitching, it’s hard to come back from seven runs.”
Drake pitcher Nicole Newman, who ranks second in strikeouts per seven innings in the nation at 11.5, stifled the Braves’ bats all day. Bradley, however, was the first team to score on Newman since Drake played Oklahoma State on March 9.
Head coach Amy Hayes said despite the loss, the team successfully strategized against Newman.
“We did a really good job of figuring her out, and [we] made some good adjustments on her,” Hayes said. “We just didn’t have enough innings to make up [for the deficit].”
After dropping the first game, the Braves attempted to dig themselves out of the hole in the latter of Friday’s doubleheader. Bradley jumped out early this time, scoring six runs in the top of the second. Freshman Stacia Steeton capped off the offensive barrage by doubling to left field which drove in Schroeder, junior Gabby Stoner and sophomore Allison Apke to spur a 6-2 lead.
Hayes said she attributed the early start to staying positive and entered the game utilizing her philosophy of scoring perseverance.
“You’ve got to be positive between the doubleheader,” Hayes said. “What we want to see is putting runs on the board every single inning. When we keep pushing and keep punching is when we get our W’s.”
Schroeder scored again in the top of the sixth inning off senior Elizabeth Leonard’s single up the middle to make the score 8-5. Drake tied the game in the bottom of the sixth and walked off with a 9-8 victory in the bottom of the seventh.
Hayes said the Braves could have won, but need to focus on securing a lead to win games.
“We have to find a way to finish,” Hayes said. “Defensively we have to find a way to be there for our pitchers and hitters and stay aggressive.”
In the 36-degree frigid finale of the series, Drake jumped out to a 5-0 lead when Bradley broke into scoring off an Apke two-run homer. With bases loaded in the top of the seventh, the score 6-3, the Braves had one more chance to tie or take the lead. Unfortunately, a ground out to third base extinguished the Braves’ chance. The win extended Drake’s conference record to 8-0.
Schroeder, the only Brave to play all 31 games, said the team needs to work on comebacks and consistent play moving forward in the season.
“We rally late in the game, but we need to find a way to be consistent throughout the whole game and not live or die in those last few innings,” Schroeder said.
Halfway through the season, Hayes has praised the Braves’ pitching and offense. The Braves have scored in all but seven of their 31 games, but Hayes said improving defense would be significant to the rest of the season.
“[We] were just giving up too many hits and too many walks,” Hayes said. “We [have] got to get the ball on the ground and let our defense work … Defense wins championships and that’s what we need to hone in on.”
This weekend Bradley will play against Indiana State (16-14, 4-4 in conference) in a three-game roadtrip. The expected weather is cloudy and cold with a chance of snow, but Hayes said she does not anticipate a cancellation. The first game will start at 11 a.m. tomorrow in Terre Haute.
