After struggling in the first tournament of the year, Wisconsin (1-4 overall) hopes to fare better this weekend in the Texas A&M-Corpus Christi tournament in Corpus Christi, Texas.
The first two games for the Badgers will come against host Texas A&M-Corpus Christi Thursday. The Islanders (0-5) have been unable to get a victory so far this season, but that does not mean they should be overlooked. While the team has yet to record a victory, a bright spot for the Islanders has been sophomore pitcher Liz Carter. She has an ERA of 1.43 so far and is also batting .333. However, the Islanders have had trouble scoring runs, averaging just over three per game.
Wisconsin will then face South Dakota (1-3) for two games Friday. The Coyotes have had a rough start to the season, and Badger players like senior Maria Van Abel will attempt to take advantage of South Dakota’s poor pitching. The ERA’s of the two starting pitchers are 8.11 and 10.50, meaning Wisconsin’s stagnant offense will have an opportunity to produce more than it has so far this season.
However, the Coyotes can do some damage offensively. Two players stand out for their offense—junior first baseman Yvon Minogue, who has a batting average of .538, and junior catcher Katie Cochran, who is hitting .455.
The final series for Wisconsin will be played against Alabama-Birmingham Saturday and Sunday. The Blazers made the NCAA tournament last year, but they have not gotten off to a great start this season with a record of 2-3. UAB’s biggest strength is its offense, which has a cumulative batting average of .265 and has scored 33 runs in just five games. Wisconsin could, however, take advantage of a pitching staff that has struggled in the young season. Opponents have a total batting average of .352 and have scored 40 runs against UAB pitching.
The Wisconsin offense should perform better this tournament and should get a few more wins because of the weak opposing pitching staffs. The Texas A&M-Corpus Christi tournament will kick off for the Badgers at 1 p.m. Thursday.
