Terps take care of business against Howard

The Terrapin softball team's doubleheader against Howard was supposed to be nothing more than a tune-up for the Terps' ACC opener this weekend. They expected two easy, routine wins.

The Terps did take care of business, sweeping the Bison with little trouble. But along the way, something unexpected happened.

Pitching has been the strength of the team all year. That didn't change in a 3-0 game one victory.

But in game two, the offense took over.

Designated hitter Lexi Carroll hit a grand slam to center field, the first home run of her career, in the bottom of the first inning.

"It just felt right. You could feel it hit the sweet spot. I turned around, and it was going," Carroll said. "All I could think about was how it was my first one. And this is college; it's not high school anymore. This is real ball."

Infielder Nadine Blackie doubled home a run later that inning to give the Terps a quick 5-0 lead they would never relinquish. The Terps tacked on one run in the fourth and three in the sixth to win in six innings, 9-1.

A Terps' offense that was stagnant for the first few weekends of the season continued to improve, taking advantage of a weak Howard pitching staff to the tune of a combined 16 hits in the two games.

While the offense clicked, five Bison errors aided the Terp victories as well as Howard (1-10) allowed four unearned runs in the doubleheader.

Even if the offense had been quiet, the Terps (10-7) would have likely been able to get by on their overpowering pitching. Hurlers Kendra Knight and Kerry Hickey continued to shut down opposing batters, as the Bison only managed three hits on the day Their single run was unearned.

The Terps start ACC play Saturday against Virginia, but refused to let the doubleheader become a trap game, overcoming a slow offensive start with an energy level that satisfied Coach Laura Watten.

"The first couple innings of that first game we weren't really doing what we need to do," Watten said. "Then we finally scored a run, and it felt like a whole bunch of tension was gone. Then we kind of opened things back up."

Coach Watten's team was unhappy with its level of play after a loss to Towson Saturday. Wednesday's successful twin billing has them feeling a lot better headed into ACC play.

"It's nice to be able to make up for last weekend. We had an off game against Towson," Carroll said. "It was nice to be able to have another game to jump back and get that energy back heading into the weekend."

schneider@umdbk.com