Softball: Errors Costly in Lady Cardinals Loss to Upper Moreland

To say the Upper Dublin Varsity Softball team let one get away on Friday afternoon agaisnt Upper Moreland would be an understatement.

They threw one away.

The Lady Cardinals turned a close game into a blowout behind multiple errors, dooming the team to an 11-3 loss to the Upper Moreland Golden Bears.

Upper Dublin committed 5 errors (unofficially) leading to three runs and keeping the innings alive for Upper Moreland.

Upper Moreland got on the board first, as a double was followed by an RBI single. The Golden Bears created havoc on the base paths, as they ran on the Cardinals all day. Multiple steal attempts led to a number of errors for Upper Dublin.

Trailing by one, Upper Dublin almost tied it in the bottom of the inning, as they had a runner on first and third with 2 outs. Shannon Bolger had a stingy at bat, but grounded out to end the inning and the threat.

The Lady Cards began to throw the ball away in the top of the 2nd, as routine ground outs turned into hits for the Golden Bears. After a lead off walk was followed by a safely converted bunt, three consecutive errors led to three runs for Upper Moreland. Already trailing 4-0, Ganderton left one over the plate that was smacked into an RBI double. Ganderton would recover to get the final two outs, but the damage was already done.

"Kristen got the balls we wanted- fly balls, ground balls" said Cardinals coach Heather Boyer. "We just needed to execute."

The Golden Bears would tack on another run in the 3rd behind another error to make it 6-0 going into the bottom of the 3rd. Upper Dublin's bats started to heat up as Nichole Moran and Rachel Mintz hit back to back singles. With two on and no outs, Becky Starosta cashed in with a triple to score two runs. 

Starosta would score on an error by Upper Moreland, cutting the Golden Bears lead in half, 6-3, going into the 4th.

The Cardinals had the momentum on their side heading into the fourth frame, but gave it right back. Upper Moreland scored two runs before the Cardinals were able to record an out, and a sacrifice bunt brought home another to make it 9-3. 

After a hot third inning, the bats were cooled off for the rest of the game behind solid pitching from Upper Moreland. The Cardinal and Gray would manage only four hits the rest of the way, and never moved a runner to third in any of the final three innings. Upper Moreland would score two more runs to make the score 11-3 when the final out was secured.

While the scoreboard might not have told the story of a close game, the Cardinals could have made it close with the conversion of routine plays. Too many times, ground balls found the way through a Cardinals' leg, or a throw to first did not result in an out. The poor play left coach Boyer looking for answers.

"We practice these plays every day," said Boyer afterwards. "We need to take the practice and apply it to the games."

The Cardinals will have only one day of practice to try to get it right, as Germantown Academy comes to Upper Dublin on Monday. First pitch is set for 2:30.