By. Nick Konotopskyj
Assistant Sports Editor
It’s not about how you start; it’s how you finish. The softball team is hoping that’s the case as it has won six of the last nine games, including two out of three on the road this past weekend against conference foe Rhode Island.
Although the Bonnies did win the series, the team understands it let an opportunity slip away by not winning all three games against the worst team in the conference.
“We might have gotten a little ahead of ourselves,” senior catcher Anndrea Burgess said. “I think we looked past them because they hadn’t won a (conference) game going into the weekend. On the other hand, we really rallied as a team in the games we won. We came from behind and got some really clutch hits when we needed them.”
The two wins keep the Bonnies alive in their quest to make the Atlantic 10 championship tournament. The top six teams make the tournament, and currently the Bonnies sit in seventh place, one-half game behind the University of Massachusetts for the final spot.
Senior outfielder Kelli Rohan understands the importance of finishing strong and qualifying for the A-10 tournament.
“We know how great we can be,” Rohan said. “Our hitting has been there these last couple weeks, so we need to keep that up. We just need to stay focused, get the hits when we need to and capitalize.”
Rowan had a successful weekend at the plate with six hits in 11 at bats in the three-game series. As a team, the Bonnies flourished offensively, scoring 18 runs and coming from behind late in the third game to win the series.
The Bonnies faced Youngstown State on Wednesday in their last non-conference series of the season. The Brown and White held a 3-1 lead going into the last inning but surrendered three runs to lose in walk-off fashion 4-3. However, the Bonnies recovered to win the second game of the doubleheader in a slug-fest 13-7.
With everything coming down to their weekend series against Saint Joseph’s, the Bonnies will have to win at least two games, but probably all three in order to make it into the top six teams.
“It’s a big series for us,” Burgess said. “It is a make or break for us to go to A-10s, and this weekend will be the deciding factor. It is between us, Saint Joe’s, and UMass to clinch that last spot.”
With this final series coming at home, and being on spring weekend, it gives the team a chance to win some crucial games in front of a larger crowd.
“We know how huge this weekend is,” Rowan said. “We need to stay together as a team and stay positive even if things don’t go our way. We have to stay focused on what we are doing well and come out this weekend strong.”
The series against the Hawks starts tomorrow with the first game at noon and the second game scheduled for 2 p. m. The final game of the series will be seen Sunday at noon.
konotonr12@sbu.edu
