Humber’s softball team ended its seven-game winless streak in a doubleheader against the Conestoga Condors at home on Saturday.
The Hawks split the series with a loss in the first game after falling short 5-4. However, a dominant performance in the second game saw Humber score seven runs and allowed only one run by Conestoga.
The Hawks are 11-7 and ranked third in the Ontario Colleges Athletic Association (OCAA) after Saturday's doubleheader with the Condors, who are 5-11 and are ranked sixth.
In the first game of the series, the Hawks were behind at the top of the first inning after the Condors' offence hit a two-run home run to start the scoring. Humber responded quickly, scoring one run in the bottom to cut the deficit.
The third inning saw another repeat with Conestoga scoring two more runs in the top half, and Humber responding with one run back in the bottom.
With another run scored by the Condors in the sixth inning, the Hawks were three runs behind heading into the bottom of the final inning, where they showed a bit of fight.
As Humber had two outs in the bottom half, fourth-year outfielder Rilee Rothwell provided two runs to cut the deficit to one after Conestoga's defence made two errors.
With the Hawks momentum to spark a potential comeback in the bottom of the inning, the team was unable to take advantage following a pop-out on first base, extending the losing streak ahead of the second game.
Third-year pitcher Shade Hansen, in an interview before the game, said the team was focused on resetting itself with the recent struggles.
“We've kind of been in our heads more, so like, ‘we can't lose,’” she said. “We're now switching our approach to more ‘let's do the best that we can do ’and achieve the goals we set out.”
The Hawks showed more of a dominant force, with rookie pitcher Maddy Friesen providing an exceptional performance in both defence and offence throughout the second game.
At the bottom of the third inning, Friesen homered with a solo home run to start the scoring for Humber. This was her second home run of the regular season, with her first one coming from a doubleheader game against Sheridan on Oct. 2.
The Hawks would follow up with a two-run homer hit by rookie catcher Blair Naughton. This marks her third home run of the regular season and ties for first in most home runs in the OCAA.
Humber would continue its momentum heading into the fourth inning by scoring two more runs and another two in the sixth inning.
The game would finish with a score of 7-1 to the Hawks, with pitcher Hansen closing the game in the bottom of the final inning, recording two strikeouts to end the game.
Rothwell’s performance after the game took her batting average up to .531, which takes her to first place in the OCAA's leaderboard.
Despite sitting in the top five in most of the OCAA’s individual leaderboards, Rothwell said she ignores her numbers during the season.
“I don't look at any of my stats,” she said. “It's just a personal thing, because I feel like I would get too worried about them.”
“Once the season's over, it'll mean something to me. But as of right now, I'm just trying to play hard and win some games for my teammates,” Rothwell said.
In a post-game interview, head coach Duaine Bowles said several players stepped up to secure the win and highlighted their performance.
“We've been riding on Rilee’s back for the past two weeks now, and we got a couple more big hits from a couple more guys, like Maddy Friesen's been swinging the bat really well,” he said.
“I honestly think she's the rookie of the year, and she threw a hell of a game.”
Bowles said the difference came down to confidence.
“We just need to move confidently. I don't think we have been confident in ourselves in the past week,” he said. “We need to understand that we can do this, and we can do hard things.”
Humber will finish its regular season with a record of 12-8, following a split result with Durham Lords on Oct. 7 in the OCAA.
