After seven games and two tournaments at home, the Elon University softball team must try their luck away from East Field this weekend.
The Phoenix travels to Columbia, S.C., for the Gamecock Classic Feb. 24-26. There, Elon will play a Friday game against the University of South Carolina before facing George Washington University and Presbyterian College Saturday, and wrap the tournament up with another matchup with the Blue Hose on Sunday.
“We’re playing some good teams again," said interim head coach Kathy Bocock. "The competition just only gets better as our season progresses. Hopefully we’ll get better.”
Elon played South Carolina twice last year, each team winning once. Now, a younger team makes the trip to a big-time stadium against a Southeastern Conference team — certainly an atmosphere the Phoenix must adjust to. But Bocock said she doesn’t think all in attendance will be wearing garnet and black.
“If there’s good weather, South Carolina will bring a lot of good fans,” Bocock said. “(Presbyterian)’s not far from there, so they’ll bring their fans over. I think we’ll have our fans that’ll travel with us. We should be good. It should be a great weekend for college softball.”
These are the first college road games for the nine freshmen on Elon’s team. The nature of preseason tournaments ensure that most will get some playing time this weekend as Bocock attempts to find a solid combination by the time Southern Conference play begins.
“We have some different lineups,” Bocock said. “Different people playing the same positions because nobody’s won the spot.”
One thing that has remained a constant is the pitching success of the O’Shea sisters. Erin, a senior, has started four of Elon’s seven games, going 3-1 and putting up a 1.93 ERA while striking out 22 hitters and winning three of four decisions. Freshman Caitlin O’Shea has started two games of her own, winning one and putting up a 3.11 ERA.
“(Caitlin’s) doing okay,” Bocock said. “I think we’re putting her in tough situations coming up against some things, and we’re doing that early against her so she can see what it’s all about.”
The Phoenix enters the Gamecock Classic trying to snap the two-game losing streak they suffered Saturday against Bucknell University and James Madison University in the Phoenix Softball Clash. After a 5-0 start, those were the first two defeats of the season for Elon, which was set to play the two teams again on Sunday — but the wintry weather canceled the games and prevented revenge.
“(It’s) absolutely (frustrating),” Bocock said. “Because after they lost to those two teams everybody always wants a second chance knowing ‘Gosh, if we just had a little bit more time or if we had a few more innings, things could have gone different.’ That’s why we did want to play them again.”
Bocock said she didn’t think her team played their best softball this past weekend. Elon put up just four runs in their two losses compared to 37 runs the prior five outings.
But Columbia is as good a place as any to stem the tide.