Weber State University softball lost against the University of Utah 11-3 on Sept. 29.
Due to back injuries, Jordan Lockhart was the only pitcher available for the Wildcats. Because of this, they had two innings at bat in a row while the Utes had one.
The change in inning order was to give Lockhart a chance to rest her arm while the Wildcats went to bat. Despite being the only pitcher of the game, she was still critical of her own performance.
“It was hard to get my arm warmed back up after such long breaks,” Lockhart said of the ‘Cats’ two batting sessions. “After those first few pitches though, I got back into my groove again.”
The Wildcats made more mistakes than Utah, which allowed the U of U to wipe home plate clean.
“We’ve got a lot of holes in everything,” Weber’s head coach Mary Kay Amicone said of the mistakes made throughout the game.
“We’re looking for a timely hit and for girls to take advantage of opportunities to grow while other players are injured.”
The Utes scored three runs in the first inning of the game, quickly establishing their lead. The Wildcats had a chance to put Utah away but ended up missing three crucial catches.
Although Weber made several notable defensive saves in the field, they lacked consistency, committing small errors with big consequences.
Weber also had a hard time on offense, making significantly less contact than Utah.
Weber’s first runs came in the bottom of the fourth inning when Rae Gall, Landi Hawker and Courtney Petska all crossed home plate, putting Utah on their toes.
Utah reacted with risky moves in an effort to take back control of the field. In the bottom of the fourth inning, Utah’s Miranda Viramontes found her rhythm when she had three solid strikeouts in a row.
Weber State managed to load the bases despite Viramontes’ powerful pitches but couldn’t seem to keep their momentum. Although Weber made fewer mistakes in the last innings, they couldn’t seem to keep Utah from earning more runs.
They furthered their lead, scoring an additional five runs, destroying any hope for Weber to catch back up.
“The score right now, for us, isn’t nearly as important as the process,” Amicone noted. “How did we fight? How did we stay in it? That’s what we’re monitoring, and we’re just very young.”
Amicone is very optimistic for the future, saying this season has multiple purposes. The younger players can use it to grow, and the veterans can use the rest to heal.
The following night, the Wildcats took on Colorado Northwestern Community College with much different results. Weber State beat the Spartans by a final score of 11-0 in their final home game of the fall season.
The next games are on the road against Salt Lake Community College and Utah Valley University before the team comes back in February.
