The Hawk

Issue date: 4/16/08 Section: Sports

Cognigni returned from injury to pitch for the Hawks this weekend against Rhode Island.

The Saint Joseph's women's softball team continues conference action today against Philadelphia rival Temple. The Hawks endured a rough patch in their Atlantic 10 conference play when they lost their series to UMass and split two two-game series against Saint Louis and Rhode Island earlier this month. UMass appears to be the dominate force among the A-10 teams, as they are undefeated in the conference and recently shut out Temple in both games, 10-0 and 9-0.

The Hawks did not fair as poorly as the Owls did, losing both games to the Minutewomen, 1-0 and 4-1 earlier this month. On Sunday, Saint Joseph's split their series with Rhode Island, winning the opener 9-4, but losing game two, 2-1.

The Hawks have a tendency to hit early in the game, but then allow their opponent to hit in the middle innings. At the top of the first in game one, Erika Rosenwinkel,'09, Dani Gonzales,'09, and Laura Cardone,'11 each tallied RBIs. The Hawks had six runs in the fifth inning, with Rosenwinkel hitting a three-RBI triple. In the second game, Brooke Darreff,'10, hit a RBI-double, but it was not enough to overcome Rhode Island in the final innings.

With the series split, the Hawks are 4-6 in conference, but 8-17 overall.

Temple shut out Saint Joseph's last season in April, claiming both games, 6-0 and 8-0. Many of Temple's powerhouses from last year will not be returning, except for Courtney Norene. Temple's Adrienne Repsher and pitcher Ashley Smuda have moved on from last year. Smuda only allowed three hits against the Hawks last season. The Hawks will, however, face Brianna Diary, the starting pitcher in the nightcap game that again only allowed three hits against Saint Joseph's last year.

Currently, the Owls are 13-14 overall and 3-7 in the conference.

Both teams have one common strength, their pitching. For St. Joe's, it is the form of Lauren Cognigni,'08, and Gonzales. Despite losing to UMass, Gonzales allowed just one run on four hits, while striking out six Minutewomen. In the first five innings of that game, UMass and St. Joe's pitchers combined to allow only one batter to reach third base.

Saint Joseph's weakness lies in the team's inconsistent hitting. The opposing team's defense, starting with the pitcher, is overwhelming the hitters and they can't find the bases or the line drives for the win.

Both Saint Joseph's and Temple are young, with more freshmen and sophomores on the roster than upperclassmen combined, but it is the younger players on both teams that are hitting the most.

The Hawks play their series away at Temple today starting a 2:30 p.m. followed by another game at 4:30 p.m.

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