The Wisconsin softball team (16-7 overall) rallied for six runs in the sixth inning against Loyola University Chicago (4-12) Tuesday as the Badgers stole a thriller 7-6.
Trailing by five runs in the bottom of the sixth, UW sent 12 batters to the plate and scored three of the inning's six runs with two outs. Senior infielder Athena Vazquez scored what proved to be the winning run on sophomore infielder Alexis Garcia's RBI fielder's choice.
Senior hurler Eden Brock (8-4, 1.62 ERA) started the game well for the Badgers giving up only one hit in the first three innings. In the fourth, Loyola scratched out a run on a pair of errors—one by senior center fielder Sam Polito and the other from sophomore shortstop Lynn Anderson. The Badgers struck back in their half of the fourth inning when, with the bases loaded, sophomore outfielder Valyncia Raphael drew a walk which scored junior catcher Joey Daniels. The Badgers had a chance for more in the fourth but a sharp line drive hit by sophomore pinch hitter Theresa Bortua, turned into a double play and a strikeout by Anderson ended the inning.
Brock began to struggle in the fifth when a pair of singles, an error and a home run by junior Katerina Krause had tallied a total of four runs for the Ramblers. Brock, who came away from the game with a no decision, was pulled midway through the inning in favor of freshman Letty Olivarez. Olivarez (5-3, 2.05 ERA), performed well through the remainder of the game giving up only one run on two hits, despite walking four.
""I was a little nervous because I knew everything was going a little fast,"" Olivarez said. ""I saw Eden was having a little trouble so I just wanted to come in and help Eden out. She's there for me when I'm messing up so [I want to be there for her].""
The story of the game however, was the Badger's sixth inning. After failing to put together anything on the offensive end for most of the game, the Badgers tallied five hits and two walks to spur the comeback. Head coach Chandelle Schulte, who was pleased with the win, was not altogeher pleased with how her team performed on the diamond.
""It was a heck of a comeback but I thought we really performed poorly in all aspects of the [game],"" Schulte said. ""More importantly was our theme, you know, 16 strong. You saw it at the end, we didn't quit and that's the sign of a good team.""
No statistic was more telling of the team's ""16 strong motto"" than the total numbers UW used—14—to gain the win.
""We need to become more aggressive. We were passive,"" Schulte said of her team. ""I think we're taking too many strikes—we're in a situation where we have our 3,4,5 hitters up—they're throwing pitches for us to hit and we're watching. Those are the situations where you have to make things happen. Right now we're watchers and we're not doers but we're working on that.""
The Badgers are away at Ohio State and Illinois-Chicago next week but will make their return to Madison for a 14-game home stand that starts April 6 against Big Ten foe Illinois.
