Pitcher Kaitlyn Schmeiser delivers a pitch during Maryland’s 1-0 no hitter loss to Michigan at Maryland Softball Stadium on April 26, 2015.
Despite not registering a hit in the final game of a three-game sweep, the Terrapins softball team was quick to point out a positive after Game 3 against No. 4 Michigan yesterday.
After losing the first two games by mercy rule, pitcher Kaitlyn Schmeiser threw seven innings of one-run ball against a Wolverines squad that leads the Big Ten in several hitting categories.
“It’s not a win in the scorebook or on the stat sheet, but it’s definitely a win for our program,” coach Courtney Scott Deifel said. “They really competed. Michigan’s No. 4 for a reason. For us to play in that tide and keep them off balance, it’s definitely good for us.”
The Wolverines have the most runs (412) and walks (248) in the conference, so Schmeiser was pleased to limit them to no walks and one run in the series finale.
“It’s a win for us today,” Schmeiser said. “We just held the No. 4 team in the country to one run, so they’re a lot more frustrated right now than we are.”
The senior struck out three while allowing six hits and one unearned run against a team that averages eight runs per game. While Schmeiser’s strong outing wasn’t enough to lift the Terps to an upset on her Senior Day, it was an encouraging performance for a team that had surrendered 18 runs in the first two games of the series.
Catcher Shannon Bustillos, who recently started calling pitches behind the plate, developed a good rapport yesterday with Schmeiser, too.
“We really were just kind of keeping them off-balance,” Bustillos said. “Her change-up was working well, too. We weren’t afraid to throw that back-to-back, and just really making sure we weren’t throwing the same pitches to the same people each at-bat.”
The Terps’ offense, which scored its only two runs of the series in a 10-2 loss Saturday, couldn’t figure out pitcher Megan Betsa, though. Betsa struck out 15 Terps in her no-hitter Sunday, including each member of the lineup at least once during the outing.
“She had everything working for her,” Scott Deifel said. “She had an exceptional day; she had a great curveball; her off-speed was working; her rise had a great jump on it. She just really was working all her pitches and working them well.”
Betsa also shut down the Terps on Friday when she threw five shutout innings to help the Wolverines earn an 8-0 victory.
Despite being swept, though, the Terps have accomplished a significant turnaround in Scott Deifel’s first year after winning 11 games last year. Schmeiser’s ability to limit a top offense was another step in the right direction.
And as they move forward, they’ll look to Michigan’s program for inspiration.
“Everything they do, they strive for excellence, and they do that every day,” Scott Deifel said. “They play the game the right way; they’re really hard-nosed; they fight it out. So there’s tons to learn from Michigan. That’s what we’re striving to get to.”
