“Morgan Zerkle is the bomb… she’s a dog.” – Stacey Nuveman Deniz
Staying Focused After Clinching
“Honestly, we were conscious of the fact that we’ve secured the spot, so we need to not let our guard down. And I think that communication helped us stay focused…”
That was Morgan Zerkle in tonight’s postgame press conference. That means the Bandits won, and focused they were. After clinching last night, their main goal was to continue to work, improve, and get in a groove heading towards next weekend.
Bandits passed the bat, the pitchers did their job, and they found themselves in good business tonight.
Willis Sets the Tone
Sarah Willis, who came in with just 12 innings pitched on the season, got the start. Other than a single given up to Ciara Briggs, Willis had an efficient and clean start. Nine pitches and the bottom of the first was over.
Last night after the Bandits clinched their spot, both Coach Stacey Nuveman Deniz and Skylar Wallace were focused on finishing and fixing the small things.
Bandits Explode in the Second
Danielle Gibson Whorton made sure to jump on the board quickly in the top of the second. She smashed a no-doubter to right field and the Bandits took a 1-0 lead.
Bubba Nickles Camarena, who’s been heating up lately, went the opposite direction for a solo shot to left to follow. Bandits led 2-0.
After Sydney McKinney reached on a single and Mazón hit Delanie Wisz by a pitch, the Volts brought on Sam Show to the circle. Things were unraveling fast, and someone needed to stop the bleeding.
The Bandits were making good on their plan to keep the foot on the gas.
They loaded the bases by moving station to station and playing small ball. Morgan Zerkle logged an RBI single, and Skylar Wallace followed with a 2-RBI single. The lead expanded to 5-0 in the top of the second.
Smart Softball on Display
Things were looking like the Bandits we saw early in the season. Smart at-bats, barreling, small ball, and good pitching. This is what it will take to finish the job strong.
The Bandits wanted to see improvement in the circle. Hitting spots and finishing innings strong, especially with two outs. Through two innings, Sarah Willis had managed to stay clean.
Even with Danieca Coffey on second with two outs, Willis shut it down with a strikeout to Michaela Edenfield, who looked unsure and didn’t swing at Willis’ changeup.
Through two, the Volts had just one hit. The Bandits had five runs on six hits.
Volts Push Back in the Third
I wanted to see how the Bandits would attack the rest of the game. Things can always swing, and the bottom of the third gave the Volts some hope.
After Mia Scott led off with a walk and moved over on an Amanda Lorenz single, Ciara Briggs cashed in an RBI single to score Scott.
Willis had done her job, and Coach Stacey Nuveman Deniz made the change. Emiley Kennedy took over in the circle.
The Volts brought in another run when Briggs got caught in a pickle, allowing Lorenz to score and cut the lead to 5-2.
Wallace, McKinney Keep Pressure On
Skylar Wallace stayed locked in. She ripped a one-out double to right in the top of the fourth.
After Coffel reached on another hit-by-pitch, Payton Gottshall came in for the Volts. With a couple of foul outs, the Bandits left two on base.
The Volts continued to quietly stick around. Not loud, but making Kennedy work. Piancastelli and Sis Bates both reached to start the bottom of the fourth.
After Edenfield moved both runners over, Mia Scott loaded the bases with a walk. Kennedy’s command was off, so Taylor McQuillin entered with one out and bases loaded.
This was a big moment. Could the Bandits respond? They did. McQuillin came in and got out of the jam. That was the positive. Bases loaded wasn’t ideal, but McQuillin stopped the damage.
“I really thought Taylor McQuillin was outstanding, as sharp as she’s been all year, honestly, and really like what I saw from the circle today,” said Nuveman Deniz.
The Volts only managed two runs on six hits. The Bandits have limited them to two runs or less in 3-of-6 games this season.
Bandits Add On Late
But the Bandits needed to get their bats going again. After that big second inning, the offense had gone quiet.
In the fifth, Sydney McKinney started things with a double off the wall in left. She finished the night with 3-for-4 with a run scored. Jordan Roberts later walked, and both moved over on a groundout.
Now with two outs, could they cash in? Two-out hitting matters just as much as two-out pitching.
Then Morgan Zerkle happened again. She brought two home with a double to make it 7-2 Bandits. That was huge. Zerkle has been so consistent, and just finds the right swings at the right times.
McQuillin continued her fantastic work in relief. She tossed 2.2 innings, allowed only one hit, gave up no runs, struck out one, walked none, and earned the win to improve to 3-0.
Zerkle Slams the Door
Back to the two-out theme, Morgan Zerkle delivered once again in the seventh. She blasted a two-out, two-run homer to right to give the Bandits a 9-2 lead.
Zerkle finished 3-for-5 with a double, a home run (her eighth of the season), five RBIs, and a run scored.
After the game, I asked Coach Stacey Nuveman Deniz about Zerkle’s two-out production. Her response was simple and emphatic:
“Morgan Zerkle is the bomb. That’s all we got to know. It was awesome, she’s a dog. This girl’s got the dog in her. Mic drop,” said Nuveman Deniz.
Final Thoughts
There you have it. The Bandits improved to 13-7 and showed a complete effort in all three phases of the game. This team looked poised and about their business from the jump.
“If you’ve got all three facets of the game rolling, you’re in a good place, and tonight was one of those nights. Like everything was kind of doing what it needed to do, and we’re going to enjoy those days when we have them, because we don’t always have them. So when we do, we’re going to relish it and then move forward and hope for the same thing tomorrow.” – Stacey Nuveman Deniz
Game three of the series is tomorrow at 8:00 PM EDT/7:00 PM CT, streaming live on MLB.com.
Follow along with Fastpitch Wire, as we continue to bring you firsthand coverage of the Athletes Unlimited Softball League.
