Redwings win on just 3 hits

Softball isn't always about pitching or hitting. Sometimes it comes down to catching and throwing.

That was certainly the case Monday at Benet. The host Redwings mustered only 3 hits but still walked away with an 8-7 victory over Neuqua Valley thanks to their considerable edge on defense in the season opener for both teams.

"What is there to say?" Benet coach Jerry Schilf asked. "They outhit us, but we played better defense."

The Redwings committed only 1 error and made a couple nice plays for the first two outs in the top of the seventh inning to protect their lead.

Neuqua Valley outhit Benet 9-3, but the Wildcats made 9 errors.

"That's way too many," Neuqua Valley coach Michelle Schmidt said. "Twenty games from now we're going to look back and we're going to giggle about how this looked. … We've got a lot of good things to look forward to, just not today."

Part of Schmidt's optimism rests in her team's offense, which shined in its first outing. Sophomore Jenna Marsalli belted a 3-run homer in the third to give the Wildcats a 3-1 lead.

But Neuqua Valley's defense unraveled in the bottom of the inning. The Wildcats made 5 errors as Benet plated 5 runs on only 1 hit in the inning.

Benet junior Courtney Makowski supplied her team's lone hit of the third - an RBI single up the middle - as the Redwings moved ahead 6-3.

"Our hitting wasn't where it could've been, but we just got lucky," Makowski said. "I think we did really well defensively, and we can only get better hitting, so I'm excited."

Meghan Eastman went the distance to earn the victory. After Marsalli doubled with two outs in the seventh, Eastman recorded her ninth strikeout for the final out of the game.

"She gave a good effort," Schilf said of his junior pitcher.

Neuqua Valley pitcher Colleen Hohman deserved a better fate. All of Benet's runs were unearned. The sophomore finished with 8 strikeouts.

"We can't ask for much more out of our pitcher," Schmidt said. "Our pitchers need to know that they can allow the hitters to put the ball in play and that we're behind them."

Freshman Amanda Mener and senior Rachel Parrish each had 2 hits at the bottom of the order for the Wildcats. Junior Megan Rice supplied a two-out, 2-run single in the fifth to bring the visitors within 8-7.

"I am proud of our offensive game," Schmidt said. "We've got some hitters."