Unstoppable describes Mercy Softball knocking their opponents one by one in a playoff race towards the ECC Tournament in May to extend their season.
After a disappointing sweep at home against St. Thomas Aquinas and a series tied against Queens on the road, Mercy has not looked back from the deficits and has their foot on the gas pedal. The team regrouped at the drawing board, finding a need to get more wins and a chance at playing in the postseason.
Softball has settled down its humor and turned into a complete unit, focusing on the road towards winning an ECC title to bring home to Dobbs Ferry.
Coach Jamie Lorenzo discussed the group’s effort to bounce back from a rough week and produce wins with only a few games remaining in the regular season.
“After going 1-2 last week, the group was committed to improving the mistakes on the field and trying to be better of playing our game against the next competition,” said Lorenzo.
Mercy opened their two-game homestand with a series against D’Youville, which leads the conference in batting average (.316) and is one of four teams sitting in the final playoff spot. The Mavericks knew they had to be accurate with pitching the ball, communicating around the field, and limiting the Saints to fewer batting attempts.
The Saints jumped out to a hot start, hitting the ball far away and scoring a point in the first inning. Mercy returned in the third inning with a point to tie the game and two points in the fourth to take the lead. By the sixth inning, the Mavericks had complete control of the game and defeated the Saints 7-1 in game one of the series.
In the second game, Mercy held the Saints without a point and had full control of the game, winning 4-0 to sweep the series against the conference opponent. The Mavericks followed suit in the final homestand against the Molloy Lions, who they currently are tied with in the standings, and added a second sweep at home.
Freshman pitcher and first base Lauren McSweeney who was announced rookie of the week by the ECC Conference discuss the team’s two series sweeps at home given them the confident to win out in conference play.
“Our understanding is to dominate the field and play hard to have ane series in the conference, which will push us advantage in th in the tournament that we look forward to this season,” said McSweeney.
Mercy would be a lucky going into the road series against the College of Staten Island, as if they win a game against the Dolphins, they will clinch a spot in the tournament. The Mavericks had already swept the Dolphins earlier in conference play at home and were ready to win the entire series against them.
Staten Island led early in the first inning, up four to the Mavericks, who scored two points in the next inning to cut the lead down. Mercy got a break in the sixth inning, scoring three points to win the first game 7-6 against the Dolphins. The Mavericks were one game away from sweeping the Staten in the conference play for the first time in school history.
Game two saw the Mavericks score five to two against the Dolphins in the second inning with only few innings remaining in the matchup. Mercy ended the game, winning 8-4, holding the Dolphins to one point per inning and completing their third sweep against their conference opponent. The Mavericks’ overall sweep against Staten Island has officially clinched them a berth to the ECC Tournament, where the team looks to accomplish the goal of being tournament champions.
Senior outfield captain Victoria Seppala discusses the team’s impact in the last three games and how they continue to compete for the rest of conference play to prepare for the tournament.
“So far we have been playing our best ball on the field and staying locked in with two more series in the conference will be crucial for us to win to have good seeding in the tournament,” said Seppala.
Mercy Softball, 20-18 (ECC 8-8) currently sits tied for second with Molloy in the standings while riding a six-game win streak with a few games left before the tournament starts. The Mavericks head on the road this week to face the Lions for sole possession of second place and wraps the season at home on senior day hosting Queens College.
