56 // VARSITY February 13, 2014
INSIDE
SOFTBALL
Badgers show grit in
opening weekend
UW suffers only losses to top-ranked Florida
BY ANNA POULTER-HENDRICKSON @BADGERSOFTBALL
W
isconsin's season
started with a loss.
To a highly-ranked
Florida team.
The Badgers opened the
2014 season in Tampa, Fla.,
last weekend at the USF-Wil-
son DeMarini Tournament
where a pair of losses to then
No. 3/4 ranked Florida book-
ended a pair of wins.
In the first game against the
Gators, a first-inning home
run by Stephanie Peace gave
the Badgers a 1-0 lead and
starting pitcher Taylor-Paige
Stewart held UF to just one hit
in the first five innings. It took
Florida until the sixth inning
to score a run.
"The team showed a lot
of grit and a lot of fight," UW
head coach Yvette Healy said.
"And for as good as Florida is,
nobody backed down and they battled
the entire time."
Wisconsin was up to the challenge
again in the weekend's final game. Trail-
ing by four runs in the sixth inning, UW
loaded the bases and brought the tying
run to the plate, never backing down
from the top-ranked Gators.
"It was a great first weekend out,"
Healy said. "We got to see what the top
teams in the country look like and get an
idea of where we need to be in May."
Following the weekend's action, Flori-
da moved up a spot in both the USA Soft-
ball and NFCA polls to No. 1/2.
Opening weekend proved that the un-
ranked Badgers can hang with the best
of them.
STEWART THROWS NO-HITTER
● Taylor-Paige Stewart etched her name
in the UW record books on Feb. 8 when
she threw her first career no-hitter
against Bethune Cookman. Stewart
pitched five complete innings, holding
the Wildcats hitless, striking out two
and walking two. The Badgers plated
eight runs on nine hits and committed
one error in the 8-0 win.
DARRAH CONTINUES WINNING
● Cassandra Darrah picked up her first
win of the season against Illinois State
on Feb. 8, marking her 66th career vic-
tory at UW and moving her into sec-
ond all-time. Andrea Kirchberg tops
the record list with 87 career wins.
SCHEDULE (2-2)
COMING UP
Friday Ga. Southern 10 a.m.
Friday Fla. Gulf Coast 12:30 p.m.
Saturday FIU 11:30 a.m.
Saturday TBD 2/4:30 p.m.
Sunday TBD 9 a.m.
