After dropping both parts of a doubleheader to Delaware on March 31, the Monmouth University softball team was again defeated by the Blue Hens on Sunday, April 2.
Sophomore pitcher Billie Kerwood started the first game for Monmouth and played well as usual, striking out four batters in her five innings. Delaware scored two runs on Kerwood in the second inning before adding a third in the third inning via a wild pitch.
Junior Kait Mulcahey and fifth year Kelly Toomey also pitched for the Hawks. Toomey gave up only one hit in her relief of Kerwood whilst Delaware scored their final three runs against Mulcahey in the sixth inning.
No matter how strong the pitching, Monmouth found themselves on the short end of the stick. Delaware were more opportunistic, scoring six times on eight hits, whereas Monmouth were unable to get on the scoresheet with their four hits and therefore lost the first game 6-0.
Monmouth were unable to reverse their fortunes in their second game, as Delaware elevated their game one step higher and defeated the hosts 11-0.
This time, senior pitcher Kylie Gletow got the start for the Hawks and was relieved by a trio of Toomey, Mulcahey, and sophomore Emily Spencer after three full innings of work.
The Hawks were simply no match for the Blue Hens’ batters and fielders once again, with Delaware converting 14 hits into 11 total runs whilst once again blanking Monmouth’s offense. Junior catcher Devin Coia and fifth year outfielder Francesca Torraca both provided a little bit of offense for the Hawks, with each recording two hits in the loss.
On April 2, Monmouth and Delaware found themselves engaged in a much closer defensive battle, but the Blue Hens still came out on top, winning 1-0 and keeping the Hawks scoreless in all three games during the week.
Kerwood got the start and pitched the entire game for Monmouth, allowing just eight hits over seven innings, including the only run of the game, which also happened to be the game-winner for the visiting Delaware.
Coia had her second consecutive game with two hits and was the only Hawk to record multiple hits in the loss, with the team mustering just six in total. Coia’s strong offensive performances have vaulted her into the team lead in batting average; she currently sports a .455 average through the team’s first 12 CAA games of the year.
Reflecting after some results that were tough to swallow, head coach Shannon Salsburg said “Today was a solid day of softball for us. Though we didn’t get the result we wanted, we improved in the areas we focused on in practice. Billie threw the ball great and gave us a chance to win. I’m proud of the way we competed as a team today. We’ll get back to work and get ready for Columbia on Wednesday.”
Monmouth’s next chance to get right will come on Wednesday, April 5 when they host the visiting Columbia University at 2 p.m.
