By Amanda Guerriero
Throwing a complete game, one-hit shutout is not too bad for a pitcher who only started two games last season. Courtney Oliver was a breath of fresh air the Pride needed to kill the unpleasant aftertaste of being picked apart by the No. 2 ranked University of Tennessee just a few hours prior.
The Pride participated in the Adidas Invitational in Clearwater, Fla., last weekend. The team picked up four wins, but those wins also came with three losses.
“We started the year off great,” junior outfielder Ashley Lane said. “We know our record could be better than what it is. I think errors are one of the main reasons we gave so many runs up.”
The Invitational is broken down into four groups of six teams. The two top teams from every group after the first five games advance to the gold bracket of the tournament. Because of the earlier loss to Tennessee, the Pride was put into the silver bracket.
Oliver’s superb performance against Michigan State in the first round of the tournament helped lead the Pride to a 2-0 victory along with an improvement to the semifinals of the bracket. In the Pride’s seventh game in only four days, fatigue may have played a role in the inability of the team to cme back from an early deficit. The Pride could not even put a run on the board as Purdue rolled, 8-0, to end the Pride’s stay at the Invitational.
Friday proved to be the best day for the Pride when it defeated the University of Buffalo, 7-1, and Temple University, 6-4. Freshman Melissa Hodge pitched six innings against Buffalo and allowed just one unearned run. Three different players for the Pride hit home runs during the game.
The second game on Friday against Temple was a little less one-sided. The Pride took a 3-0 lead in the second after Tara Ulrich was walked home and freshman catcher Carolann Lubach delivered a two-run single. The Pride led 5-1 going into the bottom of the third, but Temple showed signs of life in the fifth. The Owls were within one run of tying the game, but Oliver struck-out the final two batters to thwart the rally.
The Pride split in the first day of the tournament, beating Illinois-Chicago, 2-0, and falling to North Carolina State, 4-2.
The Pride always starts its season in the warm, sunny climate of the south and this will only be the third time in 10 years that it has returned to Hempstead with a winning record.
The team will return home to play its first two games of the season on familiar ground with a 9-8 record. This Sunday is “banner day” as the Pride will host Manhattan College at noon followed by Seton Hall at 2 p.m.
“It’s the beginning of the season and it’s better to get things out now than later,” Lane said.
Laura Sweeney is batting .196 and fielding .897 this season.