Softball's 26 errors spoil offensive clinic

The Penn softball team is young. With eight freshmen on the squad, a certain number of errors due to inexperience are expected. Unfortunately, the Quakers can not blame their five losses or 26 errors on the freshman class. In fact, the class of 2000 came up with some of the most impressive plays Penn had during the Collegiate Classic tournament in Ft. Myers, Fla., last week. "We performed how coach expected us to," Quakers freshman pitcher and first baseman Suzanne Arbogast said. Over spring break, Penn (3-5) opened the new campaign at the Collegiate Classic, an eight-game tournament. Throughout the tournament, excluding the Marist game, Penn was better at the plate than the opposition, batting .271 as a team, compared to their rivals' .218. The Quakers also outpitched the field, with a 2.46 earned run average as compared to 2.73. These are impressive statistics for a team that finished last in the Ivies a year ago, but even with the edges, the Quakers did not return with a winning record. The place where Penn got beaten is in fielding. The Quakers batted only 188 times, 32 less than their opponents. Penn almost quadrupled its opponents' seven errors with 26. "Some of our errors were costly and some weren't," Penn co-captain Vicki Moore said. "Maybe it was first time jitters or getting used to playing outside. We're hoping that those errors stop here." The season started with a doubleheader on Tuesday, March 11, that the Quakers split, defeating Keene State, 6-3, and falling to North Dakota, 2-3. The morning's winning pitcher was Joy Silvern, while Arbogast took the loss. Sophomore Sherryl Fodera was an offensive force in both games, going 3-for-4 against Keene St. with two doubles and two runs and 2-for-3 with one double against North Dakota. The next afternoon, Penn was crushed by Marist, 7-0. The Quakers were held to two hits in the game. Penn, however, was not going to let one sound defeat quell its hopes, as it bounced back to win later in the afternoon against St. Louis, 4-3. Once again, Fodera was a key player, with two RBI and one run. Arbogast's young arm led Penn with four strikeouts against the Billikens. The third day of the tourney was a downer, as the Quakers failed to stretch a win into a winning streak, by losing 4-1 to New Haven. Penn's only run was scored by Michelle Zaptin, who went 1-2. In their last day of play, the Quakers went 2-1, falling to Austin Peay, 2-0, defeating Colgate, 2-1, and ending the tournament by losing to Keene State, 10-8. Arbogast was the losing pitcher against Austin Peay, but not before she racked up 14 more strikeouts. "We were in a hitting slump in that game. But you can't get mad at the team about it, I didn't get on base either," Arbogast said. Arbogast is currently leading the Quakers in ERA with 1.03 after playing in five games and starting two. Silvern got her second win of the season against Colgate and also went 1-for-2 with a triple. Sarah Dominic picked up her play in the last day of the tournament, going 2-for-3 against Austin Peay with one double and 2-for-4 against Keene with a grand slam. The Quakers' next chance to improve their record is today at Villanova. Last season, Penn was swept by the Wildcats early in the season, 7-0 and 2-1, in a doubleheader. Carothers is counting on the youth of her team, and especially the freshmen to carry the Quakers beyond all previous seasons. However, the grit and guts of youth is countered by inexperience. If the Quakers are to be successful, this is what they must overcome.