Diamondback Online - The University of Maryland's Independent Daily Student Newspaper

Coming off a disappointing series last weekend, the Terrapin softball team will try to get its offense back on track Saturday against No. 24 Virginia Tech (23-9, 5-1).

Good luck with that.

The Terps (22-7, 0-3) could only muster four runs against No. 19 North Carolina last weekend, and hitting will only get harder against the top-notch pitching of Virginia Tech.

Hokies starting pitcher Angela Tincher (15-4) was recently named the USA National Collegiate Player of the Week after completing a 4-0 weekend and pitching a no-hitter against N.C. State last Friday.

"She's got some different pitches, and she's one of the best in the country," Terp coach Laura Watten said. "We've been working on hitting certain pitches that are really her better stuff. You gotta score to win, and if she's going to keep us off the bases, we have to focus on keeping them off the bases."

Tincher backed up her selection by falling one walk short of a perfect game against USA Softball Wednesday night in a 1-0 Hokie victory. For the national team, the loss snapped a 185-game pre-Olympic exhibition game winning streak which began in 1996. On March 1, USA Softball defeated the Terps 7-0 in an exhibition game.

Tincher has pitched eight shutouts this season and boasts a 0.46 ERA, so the Terps will need to bring focus and determination to the plate this weekend.

"We know what some of her stronger pitches are, so we're trying to focus on those," senior outfielder Jenny Belak said. "She has a really good rise ball."

Belak leads the Terps with a .385 batting average and has hit safely in 19 of the last 20 games. Belak, along with senior first baseman Sarde Stewart and freshman pitcher Kerry Hickey have led an offense that at times has been both clutch and explosive, but lately has had trouble scoring runs, contributing to a 3-6 skid.

"I think we've all agreed that we need to make better decisions in the box, like picking the right pitches to swing at and just having good at bats," Belak said. "We need to get back into the groove of attacking teams. Last weekend we didn't attack them the way we wanted to, so we need to get back in that aspect."

In North Carolina last weekend and at Virginia Tech this weekend, the Terps have drawn the ACC's two toughest teams early on, and Watten believes that will only help prepare them for the rest of the season.

"We're going to make it the best thing for us; that's the only way to look at it," Watten said. We've got to remain focused and we have a long way to go in the season. It's going to challenge us. We're banged up a little bit, but we just have to be mentally tough."

jnewmandbk@gmail.com

Article Tools