SOFTBALL: 3-0 So Far In San Diego

[mike412]

. Last year. I managed to catch part of the tournament Pitt played in Santa Barbara. This year, they are playing in San Diego. They beat Utah Valley and Portland State yesterday, and this morning they beat Grand Canyon State. That the good news. The bad news is that their two remaining games are against the two teams who appear to be the best in the tourney. Including host San Diego in a few minutes.

My observations are similar to last year: This team can hit and it can run. But the pitching and defense are not great. In the tourney, teams appear to be pitching around Taylor. That worked better yesterday, especially for Portland State, than it did today. Pitt beat PSU (Portland State University) 1-0 on a sixth inning run which scored from 2B on an infield single and an error.

Today, the big bat was Georgia Z -- I won't try to spell it, who twice cleared the bases with 3 run "triples." I put it in quotes because the first should have been caught and the second would have been caught by a better outfield defense. The team was very aggressive on the base paths, and took advantage of poor outfield arms.

As for pitching, a few days ago frosh Sarah Dawson pitched a perfect game. But in that game she had zero Ks. Having seen her in person twice yesterday, she doesn't overpower hitters like dominant pitchers do. Her ball has good movement and she nibbles the corners. But even as frosh, the great NCAA pitchers were dominant and could blow the ball by hitters. Kayla Harris relieved her in both games yesterday and pitched a complete game this morning. She had a couple of Ks but she doesn't throw hard. This is the team's big weakness IMO.

There are 4 players from San Diego on the team so I assume that was one reason for playing here this year. Two are senior mainstays, including SS and leading hitter Maggie Sevilla. One is the junior backup catcher and one is a freshman OF who apparently is the team's designated runner. There were some friends and family members there but the crowd was much smaller than last year in Santa Barbara. I suspect one reason is that the weather is much cooler. Last year, the weather was beautiful. It also could be that the school is on Spring Break because the San Diego campus seems pretty deserted.

It took me a while to find a place with wifi and where I could watch the disaster of a basketball game, but I think the game with San Diego probably already has started so I'm heading back now.

 

[mike412]

Beat San Diego (not to be confused with San Diego State) 8-6. The biggest play of the game occurred when the UCSD starter left the game in the 2nd inning with an injury. Her replacement didn't throw nearly as hard and threw a lot of flat fastballs up in the zone which were very hittable.

San Diego native Kathryn Duran started Pitt's comeback in the bottom of the second inning with a leadoff HR. But the biggest blows were by Georgiana Zeremenko and frosh Olivia Gray. Zeremenko came up in the 3rd with the bases full for the 3rd time (twice against Grand Canyon) and drove in 2 with a double. Unlike the two balls in the morning game, no one could have caught this one. Later she blasted a solo HR. After the bases were again loaded, Gray cleared them with a line drive double in the gap. Putt took a 6-2 lead and never trailed.

Sarah Dawson was sharp until the 6th when she appeared to run out of gas and didn't retire a batter. Jenna Modic replaced her and managed to hang on despite giving up a ton of walks with a big lead.

15-4 with 3 more games left in San Diego: Texas A&M tomorrow and then UCSD again on Tuesday followed by a game against St Joe's later that day. A&M has traditionally been very strong. I haven't seen them because my wife actually insists we see other things in San Diego when Pitt isn't playing. Hopefully I will see the game tomorrow before we head back to Santa Monica on Monday morning.

 

[Joe the Panther Fan]

FWIW, A&M is ranked in the top 20.

 

[singregardless]

Game against A&M delayed until 12:30. The tournament is at USD, not UCSD. Linda Vista, not La Jolla.

 

[singregardless]

Few thoughts, since I've been to all of the games:

* The Pitt bats have been slow to start. They've been down in 3 of the 4 games played so far. The only game they haven't had to come back in was a 1-0 win over Portland State.
* All healthy Panthers have made appearances in the tournament. Choe & DeMatteo as pinch runners. Myers as a defensive sub in LF. Sills is injured.
* Zeremenko is a legit bat. She came in with a 1.000+ slugging% and moved that up a tick. She's done major damage through the first four games of the tournament.

* Harris has missed low often in her last appearance against Grand Canyon. Wasted pitches could be costly against A&M. She does deserve credit for saving games that Dawson didn't finish.
* Not often you praise a .441 hitter for their bunting ability, but Sevilla laid down a picturesque bunt that really broke the game open against Grand Canyon. That game was really weird early, where every Pitt at-bat ended in either a strikeout or a walk.
* Not a huge fan of the move of Pickett to catcher - I was very impressed with her at 3B - but she's so sound fundamentally, they probably figure they benefit from her more behind the plate than at 3B. And, truthfully, Solak hasn't been too big a dropoff defensively. Offensively, the move is an upgrade.

* While the bats have been slow to start this tournament - good luck to the ACC in dealing with that top 4 in Pitt's order. They've had Zeremenko more in the 6 spot than the 5 spot, though I believe she was 5th against Utah Valley. Coach Aprile has a special core. A lot of experienced talent that should win a bunch of games.
* Dawson has been good for a freshman. Doesn't miss bats, but she doesn't get rattled either. Bigger than King. King had more pitches though.
* Hershman is special when she gets on the basepaths. I love watching her steal bags & grab extra bags when the girls behind her make contact. I could see her being lethal as a leadoff hitter once Pickett moves on after this season.

 

[singregardless]

Game against A&M called - rain just hasn't let up. Two games Tuesday against San Diego (11 pacific/1 eastern) & Saint Joseph's (2 pacific).

 

[Nish67]

Thanks Sin and Mike for your updates. Haven't been able to see the team this year so you really helped with your descriptions of Dawson and others. They lost two good bats and heart in Thea and Fannin. Needed Hershman to step up. Didn't expect this much from Zeremenko but pleasant surprises are what you always hope for. This is a sport where we don't often get out-coached. Got some nice talent coming in next year to, hopefully, keep the program's momentum on an upswing.

 

[mike412]

I heard about the girl from Catasaqua they signed from one of the parents, then googled her. FloSoftball has her as a top ten recruit nationally. MaxPreps has her as a HS All-American. Not a power hitter, but the parent said she supposedly is faster than Hershmann, and Hershmann can really motor. They also signed two players who pitch and also are position players, but both of them are better position players per the Google stories I read. I still think they are one dominant pitcher and one power hitter away from being really good.

What did you think of Taylor playing SS and Sevilla moving to 2B? That surprised me because I think Taylor's bat is much better than her glove. She had 2 errors against San Diego and neither was a really hard play. I thought Taylor got a little frustrated with teams pitching around her or at least so carefully to her.

My impression was that they are alternating Pickett and Duran at C, but maybe that is only in double headers.

I think you are correct that the top 4 in the batting order is going to be a problem for almost every team they play. But Aprile really can put 7 or 8 good bats out there every game if she is willing to sacrifice a little defensively. And Olivia Gray had the biggest hit of the second game yesterday, and it was a hard line drive. You are right about Sevilla's bunt. I was surprised last year and again yesterday that Pitt has so many players who bat right handed. Out here, if a girl can run at all, they try to have her learn to bat lefty and if she doesn't have pop in her bat they try to make her a lefty slap hitter. I don't know if Aprile doesn't like slap hitters or just doesn't have them on the roster, but they generally take a good swing at the ball. And the top half of the order can run.

Last year at Santa Barbara there were lots of HS softball players watching the tourney. Not so much in San Diego, possibly because of the weather. More Pitt fans though than last year, mainly right behind the plate.