Lady Bobcats go astray in 2007 season

The Lady Bobcats softball team consistently draws a broad fan base, as they are the 2003 National runners-up in the College World Series and their 2006 appearance as NCAA Regional Champions displays their talent.
Yet, out of 36 total games in the 2007 season, only eight are at home. One stretch of games led to a ten-game road trip followed by the current four-game road trip.
Ginger Miller, head softball coach, insists the schedule is no different than any other year. The conference games are set by the Peach Belt Conference and the Lady Bobcats play in four region tournaments, making away games hard to avoid.
The notion of home field advantage states teams fare better at home, due to a larger fan base and familiarity of the complex. Miller dismisses this superstition.
“While we like to play at home, we do well on the road,” Miller said. “You may get too comfortable playing in one place, so playing somewhere else helps keep you on your toes.”
Because the schedule and amount of away games is similar to previous seasons, the players are used to traveling and even the freshmen adjust well.
“The girls learn how to manage classes and stay on top and keep school a priority,” Miller says.
The team gets one day off every seven days. Whether a road trip is for a tournament or just one game affects how the team prepares. If it is a regular away game or double header, it is easier to work on defenses for the batters.
However, during a tournament, the Lady Bobcats often play 5 games in 3 days and it is more difficult to focus on one team. Instead, Miller makes sure the pitching staff is well-rested.
Billy Henley, a freshman exercise science major, plays Bobcat baseball and likes to support the softball team when he can.
“I like to watch the games. I went after practice earlier this week.” Henley said. “Obviously, more people go to home games, and they can’t drive three hours away. Hopefully, they can go to the home ones at least.”
Kathy Maguire, a sophomore history major, agrees.
“I love baseball but since I used to play softball, it’d be fun to go to some games. Maybe next year, there’ll be more home games,” Maguire said.
With beautiful spring weather around the corner, more students are making the trip to the Peeler Complex at West Campus to support the Lady Bobcats. Their spirit is so strong that it helps the team, even if they are on the road for continuous stretches. The next home game is March 18 against Belmont Abbey, but they don’t need to wait until a home game to win.
“We can play good anywhere, it’s not just an at home thing,” said Miller.

Posted by Colonnade Archives on Mar 9 2007. Filed under Sports. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry