In Control at the Plate, Cats Down UIC
Kentucky entered the NCAA Tournament with a bad taste in its mouth, dropping a 3-1 decision to Arkansas in the Southeastern Conference Tournament in uncharacteristic fashion.
The sloppy defense and two errors the Wildcats committed might have jumped off the page, but Rachel Lawson was equally displeased with their approach at the plate.
“We were swinging all over the place,” Lawson said on Monday. “We didn’t make the pitcher come into the zone.”
If the Cats’ opener in the NCAA Tournament is any indication, they took their coach’s feedback to heart. Disciplined and patient, No. 16 UK batted (and walked) its way past Illinois-Chicago and into the winners’ bracket of the Lexington Regional on Saturday at John Cropp Stadium, 10-1.
“I loved that we took control in the box,” Lawson said. “We had command. Every hitter looked like they knew what they were doing. They looked like they knew what they wanted, as opposed to more of an approach that’s tentative and more defensive.”
Providing a dramatic finish was Jenny Schaper, who clubbed a walk-off grand slam in the fifth inning to clinch a run-rule victory.
“My approach for the at-bat was I was trying to work a sac fly,” Schaper said. “What we’ve been doing all year is one run at a time, one run at a time. So I was just trying to score my runner from third and I think she left the pitch up in the zone, which is exactly what I was looking for, and it just went a lot farther than a sac fly.”
Not even a week-and-a-half break between games made longer by weather could dissuade UK from taking its more discerning approach. Rather than coming out swinging after a Friday postponement and another 30-minute delay on Saturday morning, the Cats made UIC starter Allie Trudeau come to them.
The first two UK batters walked and four of the eight Cats who came to the plate in a three-run first inning worked three-ball counts. The final two to do it – freshmen Mallory Peyton and Lauren Johnson – delivered run-scoring two-out singles.
“I was really comfortable with my team,” said Peyton, who finished with two hits and three RBI. “We’ve been preparing all week for this. Yesterday we didn’t get to play, so I think it was kind of getting the nerves out the first couple innings and then when we came out and scored early I think that really settled everybody down and we really came back and hit as a team.”
For the game, UK had seven hits and drew seven walks, with all nine Wildcat starters reaching base to back Erin Rethlake. The senior allowed just two hits and one unearned run to pitch the Cats into a matchup with Notre Dame.
UK will face the Fighting Irish at approximately 9:30 p.m. on Saturday following yet another weather delay, meaning the Cats will need two wins on Saturday to make Sunday’s regional final. That’s not a challenge they shy away from.
“This is what you’re made for,” Lawson said. “This why you sign up for Kentucky. This is why you play in the SEC. Your goal is always the postseason and you’re expecting to play great teams.”
