Softball Wrap-up

The Pioneer softball team wrapped up their 2015 season with a doubleheader against the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point, winning one of the games and finishing with a 12-28 overall record. They also finished 3-13 in the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference.

Head Coach Lee Negrelli said that it was a tough, frustrating and disappointing season. There were a lot of games that they could have won but had a bad inning pitching or defensively that cost them the game.

“I don’t think our record reflects our true abilities,” Negrelli said.

The first game was one of the more exciting games of the season. They took an early lead with senior Lisa Karau scoring in the first inning. The Pioneers kept the 1-0 lead until the top of the fourth. The Pointers responded with two runs but the shaken Pointer defense allowed batter Carley Rote, a junior, to reach second and sophomore Chelsey Walker to make it home, tying the game 2-2. In both the fifth and sixth inning the Pointers were able to score, putting them ahead 4-2.

The Pioneer seniors were not going to let game one go. Senior Katie Huss hit a double up the middle and Karau followed with a singled to bring in Huss. Rote was able to reach second off a fielder’s choice and senior Haley Salazar crushed a two-run, walk-off home run for their final win of the season.

“The first game was awesome,” senior MJ Patten said. “That was the best defensive game we played all season. Our major goal was to have fun and ruin their [UW-Steven’s Point] day because if they would have won, they would have made the tournament.”

Patten tallied 21 stolen bases on the year, second in the WIAC. She also tied for a sixth-best 45 hits in 40 games played and tied for the fifth most runs with 32 at the end of her second year. She will be graduating in December and pursuing graduate school for occupational therapy. Patten said that depending on how the rest of her career goes, and if she has the time, she would love to coach.

During the beginning of the second game, the Pioneers were able to take an early lead with four runs in the first two innings, with the score 4-2 before the third. The Pointers came back with five runs in two innings, shut out the Pioneers in the remaining innings and won the game 7-4.

Salazar is the only senior that was on the team for all of her four collegiate years, accumulating 324 at-bats in 95 games played, tallying 94 hits and 58 RBIs. She received honorable mention All-WIAC at the end of her junior season. Salazar said that even though she would never be done with the sport of softball, she will miss the team environment and competitiveness. Her advice to the younger members is to not get discouraged.

“It doesn’t look good that we were 12-28, but they just need experience,” Salazar said. “They need to keep working and keep playing, and they will be very good in a couple years.”

Negrelli said that next year’s team will be completely different as some people will be switching positions and new players coming in.

“We are essentially starting over,” Negrelli said. “We are going to get some leadership from our returning upperclassmen and get some new athletes that are eager to make an impact. [We plan to] start over and teach the game all over again to make sure everyone is on the same page.”