By Pat Tintle
Contributing Writer
After a 1-3 record in the University of North Florida Tournament, the Bonnies traveled to Dover for the Delaware State Hornet Invite on March 17. After having the first two games of the competition rained out, the Bonnies took on Delaware State Sunday morning.
Freshman pitcher Carly Bilchak got the start against the Hornets, the same team which Bilchak (4.1 IP) helped defeat on March 3, 8-5. This time Bilchak went a complete 7 innings with four earned runs.
“She threw a good game. She made a mistake late in the game (an 0-2 double), but once it happened, she knew it,” said Coach Mike Threehouse. “But she made up for that mistake by doing a great job against one of their (Delaware’s) better hitters.”
As of her past two games, Bilchak is 2-0 with a 4.50 ERA.
“She’s starting to get better mentally. The more relaxed she is, the better pitcher she is going to become,” Threehouse said. “Being a freshman, Carly’s had a tendency to have the jitters at times, but her confidence is starting to build.”
Confidence is the biggest issue with the pitching staff, according to Threehouse.
“I think all the pitchers have the jitters, to be honest,” Threehouse said. “Once they get rid of that, things will turn around.”
There was no shortage of offense for the Bonnies against Delaware State. Outfielder Ashley Snider and first baseman Katie Sinclair each went 1-3 with a home run. The Bonnies were down 4-2 going into the top of the seventh, but the offense made a late comeback to score the 5-4 victory.
“We got it done the last inning,” said Threehouse. “It was a team effort right down to the end.”
On Sunday afternoon, the Bonnies players against Mount St. Mary’s. The Mountaineers set the tone early with a six-run first inning and capped off the game with a five-run fifthto win 15-2.
“We made mistakes in the first inning when Julia Pratt went in. She actually had three outs, but the team gave every out back,” said Threehouse.
The Bonnies’ two errors in the first turned what should have been a scoreless inning into a crooked number, said Threehouse. The team did not play well on either side of the diamond.
The Bonnies open Atlantic 10 conference play this weekend starting at Butler on Friday and Saturday and finishing at Saint Louis on Sunday.
“Butler is an unknown,” Threehouse said. “We’ve never played them before, so we are going about it as just another game. But being that it is an Atlantic 10 game, we are treating the season as 0-0.”
In the 2012 season, the Bonnies had a 6-14 conference record. But with new faces, veteran experience and a clean slate, Coach Threehouse and his 2013 team are prepared for the competition.
“These are the games that matter,” said Threehouse. “They are the only ones that can get us to where we want to go. Every team in the conference is 0-0, so it doesn’t matter what has happened before.”
