Sophomore combo owns pitcher’s circle
During the spring season, there has been little question as to who will step up on the mound for the softball team.
During the spring season, there has been little question as to who will step up on the mound for the softball team.
While the softball team’s power has been its driving force in Empire 8 Conference games, its ability to put runners on base has helped it seal eight of its 16 wins this season.
On March 24, junior infielder Molly O’Donnell stood at the plate down to her last strike with the softball team trailing Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute by three runs in the bottom of the seventh inning. One pitch and 210 feet later, she was able to send the game to extra innings with one swing of her bat.
Every time junior catcher Lindsey Johnson comes to the plate to hit, she performs the same ritual, touching the second “A” in the middle of her Easton Stealth bat as a tribute to her pony Andy. After this symbolic gesture, she steps into the batter’s box with strength and poise.
In addition to the six members of its coaching staff, the softball team will have an extra pair of eyes in the dugout this season in senior shortstop Annmarie Forenza.
After the softball team fell one win short of returning to the NCAA Championship to end its 2011 season, it adopted a new philosophy emphasizing the fundamentals of the game.
Whether it was with a hit, strikeout, or stolen base, each member of the senior class on the softball team contributed to the Bombers sweep of St. John Fisher College on Saturday that earned them the Empire 8 regular season conference title.