By JOHN MOOREHOUSE
If you’re an ETSU softball fan, and familiar with classic literature, T.S. Eliot is hitting deep right now. Just as Eliot once wrote “April is the cruelest month”, the start of April was downright nasty to the Bucs.
On Saturday, Western Carolina defeated ETSU 6-1 in six innings to complete a three-game Southern Conference sweep. The game was called in the top of the seventh after an incoming weather system caused a delay, but even had play resumed, ETSU faced long odds of making a comeback. The Bucs mustered just four hits — one of them a home run by Leinani Lutu that accounted for the only run — and nine total base runners.
Western won both ends of Friday’s doubleheader, by margins of 3-1 and 6-2, respectively.
After sweeping SoCon foe Furman in the final weekend of March, ETSU (15-6, 3-6) has lost five in a row: dropping both ends of a March 31 doubleheader at home against Radford, then getting swept by the Catamounts (24-13, 6-3). ETSU also finds itself under .500 for the first time this season after winning its first four games and nine of is first 10 — both representing the program’s best starts to a campaign.
“We’re struggling right now,” said ETSU coach Cheryl Milligan, who recorded her 600th career win during the series at Furman and was recognized for the feat prior to first pitch on Sunday. We got some very good pitching this weekend and then we got some not-so-great pitching this weekend. Overall, we need to score more runs if we’re going to win games. Pitching is not going to get any easier. We’ve just got to do a little bit better.”
ETSU got another quality start out of Taylor Suchy (4-4), who also worked the series opener and went the distance in a 3-1 loss in the opener of Friday’s doubleheader. On Saturday, Suchy allowed three earned runs over five innings, with her only significant mistake a two-run homer that Western third baseman and cleanup hitter Maya McPherson crushed to put the Catamounts ahead 2-0 in the fourth.
ETSU answered right away, with Lutu homering with one out in the bottom of the fourth. The Bucs loaded the bases in that inning, and chased Catamounts starter AG Batson, but pinch hitter Addison Merritt lined into a double play, with reliever Briony Bunsic stabbing her scorching line drive, then throwing it to first in time to double off the Bucs’ Tiana Rieger.
ETSU loaded the bases in the fifth as well, but came away empty handed after another pitching change, and newly entered Catamounts reliever Amanda Fulton induced an inning-ending grounder.
Failing to convert with ducks on the pond was a problem all weekend for ETSU, which went a combined 1-for-16 with runners on scoring position during this series.
“They were much more aggressive at the plate than we were this weekend. We’ve got to train that. We’ve got to get that going for us,” Milligan said. “I think our pitchers are giving us a chance.
“We’re in all these games if we hit a few balls.”
Meanwhile, Western caught some breaks — none more notable than in the top of the fifth, when No. 9 hitter Rylee Butler tapped one back to Suchy in the circle. Suchy threw to shortstop Hailey Porter for what looked like a routine fielder’s choice force out, but first base umpire Erica Bradley ruled here safe. That transformed a potential two-out, runners on the corners situation into bases loaded with one out. Western capitalized, lofting a fly ball to Science Hill alum Abigail Taylor in center field that was deep enough to score the runner on third.
Western broke the game open in the sixth with three runs on four hits and was threatening to add extra insurance in the seventh when the weather arrived.
“We need to get a little tougher,” Milligan added. “We need to figure it out a little bit more at the plate. We need to take the swings out here (in the batting cage) to the plate, do all that stuff right. We’ve seen them do it. We’ve just got to do it on game day.”
Taylor had two singles out of the leadoff spot for ETSU and stole a base after she did not bat during Friday’s doubleheader.
Bunsic (3-1), a native of Morristown, TN, picked up the pitching win in relief.
Here’s how local players on the ETSU roster fared this weekend:
Hailey Porter (Dobyns-Bennett): 3-for-8 in the series with a run scored
Payton Moore (D-B): 2-for-8 with a home run in the second game of the Friday doubleheader, adding to her team lead for dingers
Riley Croley (Daniel Boone): 0-for-7 with a walk
Abigail Taylor (Science Hill): Two hits and a steal on Sunday
Eden Muncy (Rye Cove): Four innings of scoreless relief pitching in the second game of Friday’s doubleheader