In the second weekend of Missouri Valley Conference play, the Bradley softball team faced highs and lows by splitting a doubleheader with Loyola-Chicago.
Bradley hosted the Ramblers for a Friday doubleheader in a series shortened by weather at the Louisville Slugger Sports Complex. The teams split the series one game apiece. Bradley lost the matinee 7-5 and won the nightcap 5-4.
Head coach Amy Hayes said she wished her team could have taken the series at home.
“We, as a team, all feel that we should have swept the series,” Hayes said. “When we only play two of three games in a series, it puts us at a disadvantage because we want [to] improve our win-loss record. When that happens, we need to win both games.”
In both games, the Braves came out swinging. In the first game, the team tallied two runs in the first inning, thanks to three singles and a walk from the top of the order.
Following Bradley’s opening effort, Loyola worked its way back into the game. Loyola drew back-to-back-to-back walks the following inning. After loading the bases, Loyola had a timely single to tie the game at two. The Ramblers then took advantage of an error to take the lead 6-2 by the middle of the second.
Hayes said she knows the team needs to tighten things up defensively in order to come out on top.
“Our defense let us down the first game,” Hayes said. “We need to sure it up and remain focused. The pitching staff is throwing well enough for us to win behind them.”
Hayes said she was disappointed that the team could not bounce back from the error-filled inning, and is confident her team has the ability to score runs.
“We have the ability to put runs on the board. It is just that we lack consistency,” Hayes said. “Our motto is to punch back every single inning, meaning we want to put runs on the board every inning. Sometimes, we have big innings and then short 1-2-3 innings.”
In the bottom of the seventh inning, the Braves rallied but came up just short. With two runners on, sophomore first baseman Allison Apke smacked the first pitch she saw over the center field fence to make it 7-5.
Hayes said she was impressed by her first baseman’s work ethic.
“Allison works hard on and off the field,” Hayes said. “She is really emotionally steady. You see the result [of her steadiness] in her hitting, as she is calm, cool and collected in the box. She reminds me a lot of hitting coach Rachel Huggins in her approach at the plate.”
Apke said she is proud that as a sophomore she plays a key role in the lineup every day. She leads the team with eight home runs this season and credits her disciplined approach to her success.
“I have been seeing good pitches, lining up and hitting them hard,” Apke said. “Batting fourth can be nerve-racking, but it gives me a lot of opportunity to drive in runs. I make the game fun for the team as a whole.”
During the Friday night game, sophomore right-handed pitcher Emma Jackson was perfect for the first 10 batters. She was backed by a 4-0 lead courtesy of a freshman Stacia Seeton double and a junior Katie Habryle opposite field home run. Jackson had a one-hit shutout until the Loyola bats got hot again in the fifth inning. Jackson was relieved by junior Megan Mahaffy in the sixth with the score 5-2. Mahaffy was charged two more runs but the Braves escaped victorious 5-4.
Apke credited the win to the team’s high energy before the game.
“When we have fun, are loose and have good energy we play our best,” Apke said. “If we play how we can, we will do just fine in the Valley this year. I know that playing our tough non-conference schedule against ranked teams [such as Washington, Kentucky and Minnesota] prepared us well.”
Bradley will continue their conference season with a Friday doubleheader beginning at 2 p.m. and a Saturday 12 p.m. matinee at Drake – the current league leader with five wins and a .195 batting average. The Braves, (2-2 in conference play) are the best team offensively in the Missouri Valley with a collective .303 batting average, 43 doubles and 27 home runs.
