"Going 3-1 is not a bad start to the season," said head coach Mandy Schuerman. "Offensively, we just took a little too long to adjust, but overall as long as we continue to compete with every pitch good things will happen."
"I think we did our job for the two games today," said sophomore Haley Rosenbaum. "We tried our best on the first game and had a good fight against them (Parkland). We kept the score low and in winning difference. The difference between both games was we kept our heads in the game more so in the first game while in the second game we kind of knew we would win, so we played down to their level instead of ours."
"The team as a whole did a great job this weekend," said freshman Julianna Stachowicz. "We had some ups and downs, but in the end we learned and grew more together with each challenge we faced. Our focus is going to be starting off hitting the ball and not giving up. We all just need to stay focused and play this game one pitch at a time and we will be successful."
SCF vs Parkland College:
Schuerman sent sophomore Karsyn Rutherford to the mound, while Parkland co-head coaches Kristi and Dan Paulson countered with reigning MWAC Pitcher of the Year in sophomore Karley Yergler.
After a scoreless first inning, the Cobras would score first at the top of the second off of a Yergler RBI double. One inning later, sophomore Lexie Griffin would bring in the second run with an RBI double of her own. From there, the Manatees were unable to capitalize on scoring opportunities as the Cobras took the first game.
Rutherford would fall to 1-1 after giving up two runs on six hits with one strikeout in three innings. Freshman Ryleigh Bennett would throw four innings of relief giving up four hits with two strikeouts while batting 1-for-3.
Yergler would improve to 1-1 after throwing six shutout innings, giving up three hits with one walk and nine strikeouts while batting 2-for-3 with one RBI.
Aside from Bennett, Rosenbaum and freshman Hailey Margetis would each have one hit each.
We did struggle to hit against Parkland, so we knew we had to get our bats going against Air Force.
SCF vs USAFA:
Looking to bounce back from the loss, Schuerman went with a new face on the mound as she sent Stachowicz to the mound, while Air Force head coach Russell Meyer went with Jaina Swann.
For the first four innings, it would be a pitcher duel between Stachowicz and Swann as they both put threw a combined eight strikeouts (six by Stachowicz).
At the top of the fifth, the Manatees would get on the board first as sophomore Stephanie Oaks would reach base on a fielding error while classmate Maddisan Noriega scored. The Lady Falcons would respond back in the bottom half of the inning and take the lead 2-1 after scoring off of a Manatee fielding error and a sacrifice bunt.
Heading to the top of the sixth, the Manatees would starting to fight back beginning with a Stachowicz leadoff double. After an infield single by Oaks and a double steal by both players, Margetis would put her bat to the test as she sent a double to center to bring in Stachowicz and Oaks to give the Manatees a 3-2 lead. One inning later, with sophomore Alissa Kessler on second after a leadoff double, Rosenbaum would showcase her power in a pinch hit role as she sent a homer to left center for her first of the season to make it 5-2 SCF.
"In my head, I was thinking 'I need a base hit'," said Rosenbaum on the home run. "The whole game, our coaches said all we need is ground balls and line drives too, so I just kept in my mind I didn't need to think about hitting it hard just to hit it and the bag would do the rest."
From there, sophomore Brielle Bostow would take over the seventh inning and despite giving up two hits, she was able to seal the deal with a final strikeout.
Stachowicz would get her first collegiate win of the season after giving up two unearned runs on five hits with one walk and seven strikeouts in six innings while batting 1-for-3 with a run, one walk and one stolen base. Bostow would earn her first collegiate save after throwing one scoreless innings, giving up two hits with two strikeouts.
"It felt great to be out there for the first time," said Stachowicz on her mound debut. "It felt good knowing that I had a great defense behind me and an amazing offense to give me some breathing room."
"Juli did a good job of staying in the zone today and pitched very well," said Schuerman on Stachowicz. "I thought all of our pitching was very good as a whole."
Swann would get the loss after throwing a complete game, giving up five runs (four earned) on eight hits with five walks and four strikeouts.
Margetis and Rosenbaum were the offensive leaders for the Manatees as they each had two RBI. Rosenbaum added one walk to her stat line.
"Hailey M [Margetis] has been a solid hitter all fall and is continuing her approach during the spring and Haley R [Rosenbaum] stepped up in a big way as well," said Schuerman on Margetis and Rosenbaum. "We have a lot of different options this year."
Oaks (1-for-4, one run and one stolen base), Kessler (1-for-2, one run), Noriega (1-for-3, one run and one stolen base) and freshmen Lilah Denton (1-for-2) and Lydia Denton (1-for-2) had the remaining five hits, while Rutherford (one walk) also contributed.
Up Next:
The Manatees will get ready for the next six games at home as they begin with their home opener against Heartland Community College for a doubleheader, Thursday, February 8 at 4 and 6 pm.
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