By Matt Gatewood
The University of Louisville softball team began their first home game with a bang, literally. Junior Keola Calderon smashed a home-run to left center that propelled the Cardinals to a 6-1 victory over Northwestern University in the Cardinal Spring Tournament.
“My first at bat felt really good,” said Calderon. “It is funny. I thought before the game that I couldn’t hit it over [the wall]. Then I did it.”
The Cardinals did not stop there, though. The score stood 4-1 at the end of the third inning after junior Melissa Jacobo’s grounder allowed Sara Bausher and Shannon Nord to score. After Louisville scored two more runs, the score remained 6-1 until the end of the game, improving pitcher Jessica Rak’s record to 5-4. The Cardinals scored six runs on six hits with two errors.
“[We were a] little more aggressive than last weekend,” said Louisville head coach Sandy Pearsal. “In Arizona, we did well against strong teams. We are still making mistakes that we cannot afford. We need to stay aggressive and cut out our errors.”
Louisville’s victory over Northwestern marks the beginning of the Cardinal Spring Tournament at Ulmer Field this weekend. “I was really excited to be on our home field,” said Calderon. “We are on our home turf, and we won’t let anyone push us around.” The Cardinals hope to win the tournament this weekend and add to their 5-8 record.
The softball team is young with only one senior, but Coach Pearsall is confident in her team, especially when they play aggressively. “We must be consistent,” said Pearsall. “We have a tendency to get passive.”
The University of Louisville faces the University of Northern Iowa tomorrow at 10:00 a.m. and Kent State University at 2:00 p.m. On Sunday, March 3, Louisville will face the University of Toledo at 2:00 p.m. and Belmont University at 4:00 p.m.
