By Pat Clines

Bradenton, Fla - The SCF softball team (13-11) put their bats to the test at home as they swept Kalamazoo Valley CC (1-7) 6-2 and 8-2. With the sweep, the Manatees are now 5-1 against the Cougars.

 "We knew that Kalamazoo Valley didn't come in with a bunch of experience and they were trying to get in as many games as possible ," said head coach Mandy Schuerman. "I was quite impressed with their energy they came in with, which is difficult to do, so I thought we did a good job countering it by sticking to our game plan and playing out each pitch."

"I think we did really well playing as a team," said sophomore Sam Carlin. "We all did our jobs and played a part in working together to make that big impact."

"It definitely was a team win for us today," said freshman Taylor Halback. "There was no individual that was better than the other because we played as a team, especially when we got a few double plays for our defense, which was really good."

"I felt like we put in a really good practice yesterday with compound hitting," said freshman Alissa Kessler. "I felt that it strung up a lot of runs for us."

Game One:

For game one, Schuerman sent freshman Karsyn Rutherford to the mound, while Kalamazoo Valley CC head coach Emily VanFleet went with sophomore Sofia Pavese.

The Manatees would strike first in the bottom of the first as Kessler would send a single to left to bring in sophomore Tori Copeland for a 1-0 lead. In the bottom of the second, the Manatees would add to their lead beginning with a leadoff triple by sophomore Chantel Schurr. Schurr would then score on a fielding error as Rutherford reached first before Halback sent a double to right-center to bring in Rutherford for a 3-0 SCF lead.

Rutherford would continue to put zeros on the board until the top of the sixth after the Cougars hit couple of RBI singles by sophomores Savannah Disbrow and Lily Brower cut the Manatees lead to 3-2, but in the bottom half of the inning, the Manatees would respond back and extend their lead further beginning with freshman Haley Rosenbaum drew a walk. After Schurr reached second base on a fielding error and put Rosenbaum on third, Rutherford would groundout and bring in Rosenbaum before Halback sent a towering two-run homer to left for her first collegiate home run of the season and give the Manatees a 6-2 lead before Rutherford sealed game one with the defense behind her.

"It felt pretty good," said Halback on her first collegiate home run. "I honestly didn't think it was going to go out and would have been ok with it being a sacrifice fly at best, but it topped it all off and it was pretty good."

Rutherford would get the win after throwing a complete game, giving up two runs (one earned) on five hits with one walk and five strikeouts. She was also 1-for-3 adding one run and one RBI. She is now 6-4 on the year.

Pavese would get hit with the loss, putting her at 1-2 on her record, after giving up three runs on seven hits with one strikeout in five innings. Freshman Bayli Reed would give up three runs (two earned) on one hit with one walk in one inning of relief.

Kessler would be the leader at the plate as she went 3-for-3 with an RBI. Halback followed going 2-for-3 with a home run and three RBI.

Copeland (1-for-4) and Schurr (1-for-3, two runs) had the remaining two hits, while Rosenbaum (one run, one walk and one stolen base) also contributed in the game.

For the Cougars, Disbrow (2-for-3) and Brower (2-for-2) each had two hits and an RBI.

Game Two:

Schuerman decided to go with Carlin to start game two while VanFleet went with freshman Abby Lucas.

The Manatees would strike first in the bottom of the first as Kessler would send a two-run homer to center for her third home run of the season to make it 2-0 SCF.

The Cougars would get a run at the top of the second as Brower would hit a leadoff solo home run for her first of the season. The Manatees would respond back in the bottom half of the inning as sophomore Presley O'Kimosh would bring in Carlin with a double to center to make it 3-1 SCF.

In the bottom of the fourth, the Manatees extended their lead further beginning with leadoff single by Rosenbaum. After Carlin moved Rosenbaum to second on a sacrifice bunt, freshman Maddisan Noriega would send a single to left to bring in Rosenbaum before advancing to second on the throw. After an O'Kimosh hit a single, sophomore Molly Starinsky would pop into a fielder's choice, while Noriega scored on an error to make it 5-1 SCF. They would add another run in the bottom of the fifth as Rosenbaum would bring in Schurr with and RBI groundout to make it 6-1 SCF. 

In the bottom of the sixth, the Manatees would add their final runs to the game. After Noriega (hit by a pitch). O'Kimosh (single) and freshman Stephanie Oaks (single) loaded the bases, Sophomore Olivia Seibert sent a single to right to bring in Noriega before Kessler drew a walk to bring in O'Kimosh to make it 8-1 SCF.

The Cougars would get one final run on their end off the bat of Brower for her second home run of the season and the game, but it was all they could produce as the Manatees took game two for the sweep.

Carlin would bump up to 4-1 after throwing a complete game, giving up two runs on six hits with one walk and five strikeouts while adding a run and a walk. It was her first collegiate complete game.

"It felt really good getting my first collegiate complete game, especially with it being at home," said Carlin on pitching. "I was comfortable throwing to Presley (O'Kimosh) when she's behind the plate because we have a close bond with each other. She's really helpful when she's calls for me and she works me through it."

Lucas would fall to 0-2 after giving up five runs (four earned) on six hits with one walk and one strikeout in three and two-thirds innings. Freshman Hannah Mellinger would give up three runs on four hits with one walk and one strikeout in two and a third innings of relief.

O'Kimosh would be the leader at the plate as she went 3-for-3 with an RBI and a run. Seibert would finish 2-for-4 with an RBI, one run, one walk and one stolen base.

Kessler would lead the team in RBI as she went 1-for-3 with a home run, three RBI, one run and one walk. She finished 4-for-6 with a home run and four RBI.

"I felt pretty good and thought I saw the ball really well," said Kessler on her game. "Honestly, I went up there to hit the ball hard and worked out well for me to help the team in any way. I just wanted to make contact to score runs."

Copeland (1-for-4), Schurr (1-for-4, one run and a stolen base), Rosenbaum (1-for-3, one RBI, one run and one walk), Noriega (1-for-2, one RBI, one run and one walk), and Oaks (1-for-2) had the remaining five hits for the Manatees.

Brower would be the only player on the Cougars with a multi-hit and multiple RBI game as she went 3-for-3 with two home runs and two RBI.

Notes:

This was wins 251 and 252 for Schuerman. She needs 48 more wins to reach 300.

Other Suncoast Scores:

Polk State (9-9) got swept by #3 Florida Southwestern (19-3) 6-0 and 8-0. The Eagles will face

Hillsborough (10-13) fell in their doubleheader against St. John's River State (9-26) 11-8 and 4-0.

St. Pete (11-10) defeated Bryant and Stratton (3-3) by scores of 6-4 and 8-1. The Titans will take on Kalamazoo Valley CC Thursday afternoon, March 9 at 2 and 4 pm.

Suncoast Conference Standings:

1. SCF (13-11)

2. St. Pete (11-10)

3. Polk State (9-9)

4. Hillsborough (10-13)

Up Next:

The Manatees continue their next amount of home games as they face Hillsborough Tuesday night, March 14 at 5 and 7 pm to open Suncoast Conference play.