It was a busy week for the Eagles softball team. Between Feb. 10 and 15, the team has played 10 games with a record of 6-4.
Loss to Corban, win against William Jessup
The week began with a match against Corban University in Rocklin, Calif. Thursday, Feb. 10. Corban scored the first run in the fourth inning, but Biola soon followed and scored its first and only run of the game when freshman Shaylynn Weststeyn hit a sacrifice fly to left field, giving freshman Cece Luster time to score. Afterward, Corban scored two more runs and won the game with a score of 3-1.
However, the second game of the day was an overwhelming victory for Biola. The Eagles once again faced William Jessup University, a team they had competed against in a doubleheader about two weeks ago. Biola scored one run in the first inning and four in the fourth. The final score was 5-0.
Victory all day Friday
On Friday, Feb. 11, the team competed in the Simpson University Tournament in Redding, Calif. Their first match was against No. 4 Concordia. It was a low-scoring game; the Eagles tallied one in the first inning and one in the fifth and came out on top with a score of 2-1. Biola entered the match against Concordia without paying much attention to its reputation. It was not until later that the Eagles learned Concordia’s national ranking. This win will go a long way in securing a berth to nationals at the end of the season.
The second game of the tournament was against Northwest Christian University and proved to be another success. In the seventh inning, BU shattered the 3-3 tie with two runs and took the 5-3 win. It was Northwest’s first loss of the season. In the last game of the day, Biola scored four runs but they lost to the College of Idaho, who scored seven of their nine runs in the third and fourth innings.
One win, two losses in second day of tournament
On Saturday, the second day of the tournament, the Eagle’s had one win and two losses. The scores in each game were close. Biola lost 8-6 to Northwest Christian University and 7-6 against British Columbia University. However, they did beat Oregon Tech 5-3.
As a whole, “It was a rocky weekend,” coach Lorie Coleman said, “But we pulled it together.” Initially the team struggled to get its defense together. They were still in the process of figuring out who was going to play where. However, the Eagles came away from the games with their defense settled. Coach Coleman believes that from here on out they will lose fewer games.
On Feb. 15 just a couple days after the tournament, the Eagles played a doubleheader against Simpson University.
“Coach Lorie brings out the silliness in the girls and encourages them to be themselves,” Assistant coach Lauren Heurkins said. Sometimes a bit of loosening up is exactly what the girls need in order to do well in a game.
Biola will next take the field in the Patten University Tournament on Feb. 18 and 19 in Oakland, Calif.
