Kaitlyn Schmeiser
When the Terrapins softball team received news of a snowstorm forecasted to arrive on Wednesday night, traveling to Florida on Thursday morning seemed to be out of the question. Providence and UMass, the other two East Coast teams who were supposed to compete in the Florida Atlantic Tournament, had to withdraw from the tournament.
Instead of postponing their trip, the Terps did the opposite, escaping the east coast on Tuesday afternoon, two days earlier than usual.
Back in the warm weather and abundance of sun, the Terps (0-5) are looking to put their gloomy start behind them this weekend at the Florida Atlantic Tournament in Boca Raton.
“We just took advantage of being outside and tried to get a lot of work in on the dirt,” coach Laura Watten said.
The Terps, who begin play on Friday afternoon against Mississippi State on Friday afternoon, spent most of their practice time focusing on defense. Because of the array of injuries suffered last weekend, many Terps players were forced to play positions they aren’t usually accustomed to.
Infielder Lindsey Schmeiser, who usually plays shortstop, was forced to play first base because of a hamstring injury. Watten said the injury has yet to heal, meaning Schmeiser will be unable to play shortstop again this weekend.
“We’ve got some players in some different positions,” Watten said. “Hopefully, they’ll be able to communicate a little bit better this weekend and be feel more comfortable in what they’re doing.”
The Terps have struggled in early season tournaments before. After getting off to a 3-1 start last season, the Terps went winless in the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic in Palm Springs, Calif. They followed that up with another sup-par performance, going 1-4 in ESPN’s Citrus Classic in Kissimmee, Fla.
So in hopes of rectifying the Terps’ poor start, Watten is keeping the team positive by focusing on the future instead of the past.
“We have to be focused on what we can do and what we want to accomplish,” Watten said.
The Terps hope once they earn their first win, they’ll gain the confidence they need to put aside their injuries and find success, no matter who is on the field.
“Ultimately, if we can take this one inning at a time, one pitch at a time, the scoreboard will take care of itself,” Watten said. “We have to be our best at on every single pitch.”
