The Utah softball team heads to Tampa, Florida to face off against Southern Florida on Wednesday. The doubleheader against the Bulls is the first action for the Utes since Feb. 28, and they are excited to get back on the field.
“The break was pretty nice, but I think we’re all ready to get back into it,” said shortstop Anissa Urtez. “We’ve really prepared well this week, and we’re ready to go and kick some butt in Florida.”
The Utes will have to be well-rested when they take on USF, who comes into the game riding a four-game winning streak. As a team, the Bulls are batting .304 with 18 home runs and 20 doubles. USF is scoring 4.7 runs per game, but giving up 4.67 runs per contest.
Leading the Bulls is junior outfielder Juli Weber, a left-handed hitter who holds a .403 batting average with 17 runs, 27 hits, five doubles, three home runs and 10 RBIs. Senior Lee Ann Spivey is also a key piece for the USF offense, with eight RBIs and three home runs.
On defense, true freshman Cheyenne Eggens, who had a 0.38 career ERA in high school, is the top pitcher for the Bulls. The Utes could also see Erica Nunn, a senior with a 5-5 record and a 3.73 ERA in 50 innings, or Susan Wysocki, a sophomore with a 2-3 record and 5.54 ERA in 24 innings pitched.
Ken Eriksen, who is also the head coach of the USA softball team, coaches USF. Utah head coach Amy Hogue was complimentary of Eriksen when asked about her coaching counterpart on Wednesday.
“[Eriksen] always has a great team, and so I’m excited to get out there and compete against him,” Hogue said.
Utah pitching continues to be excellent, only allowing 26 runs in 17 games so far this season. Sophomore ace Katie Donovan hopes to continue her six-game winning streak on Wednesday against the Bulls. She has pitched 51 innings for the Utes, and has a 1.59 ERA on the year.
To win against USF, Utah will have to keep its bats hot. Utah is 12-0 when scoring three or more runs and 0-5 when scoring two or fewer. Delilah Pacheco, the leadoff batter in Hogue’s lineup, looks to continue her season-high hitting streak of five games and increase her streak of reaching base safely to 11.
Another batter on fire for the Utes is junior Kay Kay Fronda. After a shaky start to her Utah career, Fronda has found her groove, hitting two home runs (one of which was a grand slam), seven RBIs and scored five times on six hits during the Mary Nutter Classic.
Hogue stressed the importance of getting good at-bats from Pacheco, Fronda and the rest of the early spots in the lineup, as well as drawing first blood on the scoreboard.
“[Scoring first is] always a big thing in our game, especially the way our team is set up with phenomenal pitching and defense,” Hogue said. “Scoring first is always one of our goals.”
If Utah can execute the way it wants, Urtez is confident the Utes will come away with a win.
“I think if we’re on our A game and if we have our pitching ready, our lineup good to go, I think we’ll be good,” Urtez said.
First pitch between Utah and USF is 3 p.m. MST. The second game between the two squads will start shortly after the conclusion of the first.
@JoeColesChrony