Three Up, Three Down: Penn softball vs. Temple

After dropping seven consecutive games and going winless throughout a two-week span, Penn softball rebounded against Yale on Monday. In their first two Ivy contests of the season, the Quakers picked up a pair of 3-0 wins against the Elis. Now, Penn (6-11, 2-0 Ivy) turns its attention back to a nonconference opponent as it prepares to do battle with Big 5 rival Temple (8-14) at Penn Park today. We examine who is up and who is down entering the midweek matinee.

Three Up

Alexis Borden: Entering Wednesday’s first game against the Elis, junior pitcher Alexis Borden featured 2-6 record in her first eight starts of the season. But Borden was downright dominant against Yale, throwing her fifth complete game and first shutout of the year. Borden allowed only two hits in seven innings while striking out four, helping Penn end its seven-game skid.

Home Runs: The Red and Blue have had no trouble getting the ball over the fence this season. Against the Elis on Monday, freshman Alexis Sargentsmacked a solo shot in the first inning of the first contest before going yard again in the second game of the doubleheader. Fellow freshman Leah Allenalso hit a homer in the nightcap against Yale.

Rookie Sensations: While Penn has struggled all season, its freshmen have been stellar. Sargent and Allen are tied for the team lead in home runs at four apiece. Additionally, Sargent has been terrific on the rubber, notching a 3-2 record — including a win over Yale on Monday — and leading the Quakers with a 1.21 ERA.

Three Down

Temple’s Recent Schedule: Nothing has been easy for Temple lately. Since March 22, the Owls have dropped all three games that they’ve played, including three losses to Houston in a two-day span by a combined score of 23-6. But those are the only three games Temple has been able to play over the past ten days, as the Owls’ five games since then have either been postponed or cancelled.

Weather: Of course, one can imagine why the Owls have had such trouble getting time on the field. The weather in the Northeast has been extraordinarily poor throughout the month of March. 11 combined games were either postponed or cancelled between the two Philadelphia rivals last month.

Owls at the plate: Temple has struggled on offense in 2014. The Owls have managed only a .265 batting average this season, a mark that ranks fifth in the American Atlantic Conference. Temple’s batting average is .018 points higher than Penn’s, but the Owls have consistently been outhit by their opponents, allowing a .281 batting average this year.