UW-Eau Claire Softball faced a tough opponent on Saturday, April 18, as they went on the road to UW-Platteville.

The Blugolds dropped both games in a high-scoring doubleheader against UW-Platteville. 

In the offensive-heavy doubleheader, the score was 11-6 in the first game before coming up short again in the second game with a score of 17-11. 

Despite producing 17 total runs across both games, the Blugolds were unable to contain the Pioneers’ offense.

Head Coach Leslie Huntington pointed out UW-Platteville’s strong hitting and an unusual struggle from her own team’s pitching as key factors in the losses.

“[UW-Platteville’s] a really strong offensive team, and they came out swinging the bats really aggressively,” Huntington said. “They had an ability to find open gaps — right-center field, balls up the middle — just a lot of things that were really tough to defend.” 

While the Pioneers’ bats set the tone early on, the Blugolds’ difficulties in the circle compounded the issue. Huntington said there was an unusual number of walks and hit batters, something that has not been typical of her team in recent games.

“Our pitching performance was a little surprising to me,” Huntington said. “We’ve gotten much better at that recently, so struggling to find the strike zone like we did was uncharacteristic.” 

The Blugolds kept pace at the plate in both games, scoring enough runs to remain competitive throughout the doubleheader. 

“We scored enough runs to win,” Huntington said. “Offense wasn’t our problem [Saturday].” 

Fourth–year infielder Siri Springer was a standout performer offensively as she contributed key hits while driving in runs. She highlighted the team’s ability to adjust at the plate between games. 

“We just needed to attack strikes and keep putting the barrel on the ball, which we did,” Springer said. “We were able to string together runs, but overall, we just weren’t able to execute on defense.” 

Defense proved to be the decisive winning factor, especially in crucial late-inning situations. Hungtington said the Blugolds repeatedly put themselves in position to end innings. 

“We’d get two outs and then have a ball in play that should have been the third out, and we didn’t execute,” Huntington said. “Whether it was a pop-up or a ground ball, we just didn’t make the plays we needed to.” 

Moments like those allowed the Pioneers to extend innings and build momentum, often rallying with two outs. 

Despite setbacks, the doubleheader was not without positive performances for the Blugolds. Huntington said there were several individual performances to be recognized. 

Springer’s offensive contribution was one to be noted. Another memorable performance was from first-year catcher/outfielder Hope Gilhooly who tallied four hits after entering in a pinch-hit situation. 

“That was a real bright spot for us,” Huntington said of Gilhooly’s performance. “For a kid that hasn’t played much, that was huge.”

Springer said she was pleased with her performance but acknowledged there is still room for improvement.

“I’m happy with how I played, especially being able to drive in runs for the team,” Springer said. “But there are always things to clean up. It’s about moving on and focusing on the next game.”

Huntington said that she and the team emphasize the importance of learning from losses while maintaining confidence in the team’s abilities. 

“We’ve got the type of players that can get the job done,” Huntington said. “It’s about committing to one pitch at a time, controlling what we can control and competing for all seven innings.”

Springer also said she believes it’s important to focus on what the players can control, and the team is capable of performing well. 

“Losses like these are hard, but we’re a very good team,” Springer said. “We just have to execute in all aspects — defense, pitching and offense — and keep moving ahead.”

The Blugolds return home for their next matchup against UW-Stevens Point on Tuesday, April 21. 

With conference games around the corner, Huntington said she believes her team has potential to respond quickly.

“This conference is a dogfight,” Huntington said. “It’s about how we respond.” 

Gerlach can be reached at [email protected].