The softball team played four games in the Alvy Early Memorial Classic but lost all four. Games one and two were on Saturday, Feb. 15 against Maryville (0-8) and Southern Arkansas (0-19). Games three and four were on Sunday, Feb. 16 against Missouri- St. Louis (3-6) and Southeastern Oklahoma (2-4).
“It was a little bit of a rough weekend from a results standpoint,” Head Coach Ashley Balazs said. “But there’s definitely some good takeaways from things we did well at certain times. It just wasn’t enough to come away with any wins. So, we’re excited to get back to work…”
According to Balazs, the team needs to work on a couple of things before their next game.
“… For us, it’s not so much physical stuff,” Balazs said. “It’s a lot of mental stuff… (We also need to work on) having a game plan and kind of overthinking on the mound as well.”
During the game against Maryville, sophomore Madison Szymanski had one hit. Senior Makenzie Goswick had 10 putouts, senior Kaity Kukowski had two, and freshman Kiley Hyslope, senior Madison Wegner, and senior Makayla Lamphier each had one. Sophomore Mareika Turpen had six assists, Lamphier had three, and sophomore Shelby Smith added two.
During the game against Southern Arkansas, Kukowski, Szymanski, and Hyslope each made one hit. Goswick recorded a total of four putouts, Kukowski, Szymanski, and freshman Maggie Mathes each had two, and sophomore Keelah Griffith and freshman Kianna Pellegrino each made one. Mathes added three assists, Kukowski made two, and junior Kinsley Stewart made one.
During the game against Missouri- St. Louis, Griffith made two runs and Mathes added one. Goswick and Szymanski each made two hits and Griffith made one. Griffith added two RBIs. Goswick recorded a total of 10 putouts, Szymanski had three, Griffith, Kukowski, and Lamphier each had two, and Smith and Pellegrino each added one. Kukowski, Lamphier, and Stewart each had three assists and Smith added two.
During the game against Southeastern Oklahoma, Griffith and Turpen each made one run. Griffith, Turpen, and Hyslope each made one hit. Turpen added one RBI. Goswick recorded a total of 10 putouts, Szymanski had three, Turpen had two, and Griffith, Kukowski, and Pellegrino each added one. Kukowski and Mathes each made four assists, Szymanski made two, and Turpen, Smith, and junior Kaylee Burnett each added one.
“We had a really good start from Shelby there on Sunday… and Keelah came out big in that game with a three-run shot to give us a three-run lead,” Balazs said. “So, those guys did some things well.”
The softball team will travel to Edmond to compete in the Edmond Regional Festival from Friday, Feb. 21 to Saturday, Feb. 22. The first two games are on Friday, Feb. 21 against St. Mary’s at noon and then Oklahoma Christian at 4 p.m. Games three and four are on Saturday, Feb. 22 against Midwestern State at 10 a.m. and Cameron at 4 p.m.
“We just gotta go now,” Balazs said. “We gotta change our mindset, we gotta start coming away with some victories, and just continuing to work hard.”