After a 1-4 record in a season-opening tournament in California two weekends ago, the Penn State softball team was not in competition this past weekend.
This doesn't mean that the Nittany Lions weren't working on their game throughout the past week.
At the Stanford Invitational, the Lions struggled to get hits in key situations, which cost them some close games.
The Lions dropped a pair of 2-1 decisions to Stanford and Kentucky, and lost 3-1 to Missouri in the tournament opener.
In those games, the Lions went 2-for-17 with runners on either second or third.
The lone victory for the Lions came against Missouri in the third-place game, a 3-2 victory, when they went 3-for-9 in those same situations.
The Lions, for the entire tournament, hit at a 5-for-28 clip with runners on second or third.
The Lions' bats only hit for a .220 average overall, but that was good enough to outhit their opponents who hit .210.
"Our coach always says, 'Pitching, defense, and hitting, you need two out of three to win a game,' " second baseman Barbie Pierce said.
"We have got all three, but somewhat sporadically. We have to work on getting our games together and getting everything to come together at the right time."
Musical lineups
Penn State softball coach Robin Petrini is known for juggling her lineups, and her players expect it. After centerfielder Gina Bianchini struggled in the leadoff position for the first two games of the tournament, Petrini slid Bianchini down in the lineup to the two spot and moved shortstop Mandy Nuxoll up into leadoff.
"Gina hadn't been getting on and Mandy had," Petrini said. "Mandy will stay at that leadoff spot until Gina shows she can get it back."
Petrini said that she has shown her team statistics from last season about where players batted in the order and "the numbers were quite astronomical." Petrini is able to dabble with the lineup due to the flexibility of the players, which is something she says every team should have.
Right now it looks like right field, third base, designated hitter and catcher are all positions that could see different players throughout the season. Sophomore Leigh Murray and senior Kelley Galigher have often flip-flopped, playing right field and designated hitter through the first five games.
"Coach is giving everybody lots of opportunities," Murray said.
"She wants to see who can produce the RBI hitting."
Destinie's child
Destinie Chavez looks to have found herself a place in the lineup. The versatile freshman from San Leandro, Calif., started all five games, playing two games at catcher and three at third base. She split time at catcher with junior Kate Gentile at the Stanford Invitational as last season's starter, Erica Greenberg, is out indefinitely with a broken toe. Chavez shared time at third base with Galigher.
Chavez could only muster two hits as she batted anywhere from fifth to ninth in the lineup, but Petrini likes what she sees from the freshman.
"She did a great job at both third [base] and catching," Petrini said. "It was a great plus coming out of that weekend and she shifted gears with out a hitch."
Supporting Hanson
Lions' pitcher Marisa Hanson is 0-2, despite having a 1.07 earned-run average and holding opposing batters to a microscopic .139 batting average. The reason for this may be the lack of run support she received in her three outings as a starter. Over the 18.2 innings she has pitched as a starter, which includes two complete games, she has gotten just three runs from her offense.
With sophomore Missy Beseres out of action for an indefinite amount of time due to an irritation of a tendon in her wrist, Petrini has said that the Lions will have Hanson and sophomore Tina Skelly on the rubber most of the time.
Sophomore Shana Riggleman struggled in her lone appearance at the Stanford Invitational, giving up three runs in just one-third of an inning. Petrini plans to spot-pitch her as the season goes along.
