University of Delaware Athletics
Five Takeaways From Delaware Softball's Hot Start
2/20/2020 3:53:00 PM | Softball
The Hens are hot. Delaware softball is 9-1, the best 10-game start since the program's inaugural season in 1976. With powerful bats and diverse pitching, the Blue Hens have won eight games in a row after sweeping the Cardinal Invitational in San Antonio last weekend. Here are five takeaways from Delaware's impressive start:
1. A Young, But Experienced, Lineup Is Powering A Balanced Offense
The Blue Hens are hitting .292 as a team in 2020, including five regular starters that are each hitting .333 or better. While the top three Blue Hens hitters in terms of batting average (Brooke Glanden: .467, Brittney Mendoza: .379, Hanna Garber: .361) are all just sophomores, all three played in each of Delaware's 51 games during the 2019 season. That experience is turning into results in 2020.
"They've bought into a lot of things that we're asking them to do," head coach Jen Steele said. "It's been clicking, they've bought into a different philosophy regarding running the bases and driving the ball and it's been fun to coach them."
"There's just experience that we have," Steele continued. "The top [of the lineup]'s been getting on and the middle has been driving them in, so that's been really working for us."
"I think just having so many different threats, we're all kind of different hitters," Garber said. "So if a pitching style maybe doesn't work for one person, they're struggling a little bit, the other girls are there to pick them up."
2. Delaware's Pitching Staff Has Four Effective Arms
While most collegiate softball programs have one or two star pitchers, occasionally three, the Blue Hens have deployed four different pitchers in the circle effectively this season. Senior Sarah Piening leads the staff with a remarkable 0.54 ERA, allowing just one earned run in 13 innings. Piening and fellow senior Maddi Marsh each have a 3-0 individual record.
Two newcomers have also been dealing for Delaware. Freshman Emily Winburn has a team-high three saves and 23.2 innings pitched, while sophomore Kailey Christian (who transferred from State College of Florida) leads the team with 16 strikeouts.
"It's awesome because you have different looks," Piening said. "Our strength lies in our diversity."
The diversity of pitchers on staff allows the Blue Hens to match up the best arm for the situation more fluidly.
"We've been able to manage a little bit differently, and I'm still learning, but they have confidence as a staff right now and they're doing a really good of always staying ready," Steele said. "So it's been fun to see that happen."
3. Brooke Glanden Is Raking
Not only does the sophomore first baseman lead the Blue Hens with a .467 batting average and 14 RBI, she's also hitting for power. Glanden has four doubles and two home runs for a team-high .767 slugging percentage.
Even when she's not slugging it, Glanden is staying disciplined at the plate, drawing a team-high seven walks.
"Brooke is really naturally gifted. She's big, she's strong, she has incredible reach, she can hit a lot of pitches, she can drive a lot of pitches out of the park," Steele said. "She continues to gain confidence by having good at-bats. Even when she's not getting hits, she's having a lot of quality at-bats, she's picking good pitches to swing at."
That combination of power and plate discipline has resulted in an eye-popping OPS (on-base plus slugging) of 1.335
4. Hanna Garber's Versatility Has Been Key At The Top Of The Lineup
Garber's speed was on full display during her freshman year in 2019 as she made the CAA All-Rookie team after leading off and playing center field every game and stealing 27 bases. But now in 2020, she's added an element of power to her game in addition to the speed.
"Hanna came to us as really a slapper; a singles hitter who would hit some doubles," Steele said. "She drove her first one out last weekend. She had the fastest home run trot you've ever seen."
In addition to her first career homer, Garber leads the Blue Hens with three triples, 11 runs scored and eight stolen bases. As a team, the Blue Hens have stolen 28 bases this year, a rate of 2.8 per game that ranks sixth highest in Division I.
"Not really thinking and just swinging has been helping," Garber, who is batting .361 so far this year, said. "I think mixing in a little slapping, bunt sometimes, when my swing isn't feeling as good has also been helping. But mainly just not getting down in the count, just swinging at good pitches."
5. Stringing Wins Together Has Boosted The Blue Hens' Confidence
Even though Delaware has returned much of its starting lineup from last season, a large chunk of those players are underclassmen who haven't experienced a lot of success at the collegiate level. Delaware finished eighth in the CAA in 2019 and was picked to finish eighth again in the preseason coaches poll. But being able to win so many games early this year, especially earning wins in different ways, has been a boost to the Blue Hens' confidence.
That confidence manifested in a dramatic walk-off win Sunday afternoon in the finale of the Cardinal Invitational. Trailing Cleveland State 3-2 in the top of the seventh, sophomore second baseman Brittney Mendoza belted a leadoff homer to tie the game at 3-3. After a Brooke Glanden double, sophomore third baseman Halle Kisamore homered down the left field line, giving the Blue Hens the 5-3 victory.
"I really saw it come into play Sunday when we were down against Cleveland State," Steele said. "We had only hit four or five home runs up until that point, and we had two in that inning. Winning eight games led to us being able to walk it off in that moment."
1. A Young, But Experienced, Lineup Is Powering A Balanced Offense
The Blue Hens are hitting .292 as a team in 2020, including five regular starters that are each hitting .333 or better. While the top three Blue Hens hitters in terms of batting average (Brooke Glanden: .467, Brittney Mendoza: .379, Hanna Garber: .361) are all just sophomores, all three played in each of Delaware's 51 games during the 2019 season. That experience is turning into results in 2020.
"They've bought into a lot of things that we're asking them to do," head coach Jen Steele said. "It's been clicking, they've bought into a different philosophy regarding running the bases and driving the ball and it's been fun to coach them."
8️⃣-1️⃣.
— Delaware Softball (@Delaware_SB) February 16, 2020
Best start in 4️⃣4️⃣ years.
We're just getting started. #BlueHens pic.twitter.com/gjGQ8hcmZ0
"There's just experience that we have," Steele continued. "The top [of the lineup]'s been getting on and the middle has been driving them in, so that's been really working for us."
"I think just having so many different threats, we're all kind of different hitters," Garber said. "So if a pitching style maybe doesn't work for one person, they're struggling a little bit, the other girls are there to pick them up."
2. Delaware's Pitching Staff Has Four Effective Arms
While most collegiate softball programs have one or two star pitchers, occasionally three, the Blue Hens have deployed four different pitchers in the circle effectively this season. Senior Sarah Piening leads the staff with a remarkable 0.54 ERA, allowing just one earned run in 13 innings. Piening and fellow senior Maddi Marsh each have a 3-0 individual record.
Two newcomers have also been dealing for Delaware. Freshman Emily Winburn has a team-high three saves and 23.2 innings pitched, while sophomore Kailey Christian (who transferred from State College of Florida) leads the team with 16 strikeouts.
"It's awesome because you have different looks," Piening said. "Our strength lies in our diversity."
The diversity of pitchers on staff allows the Blue Hens to match up the best arm for the situation more fluidly.
"We've been able to manage a little bit differently, and I'm still learning, but they have confidence as a staff right now and they're doing a really good of always staying ready," Steele said. "So it's been fun to see that happen."
3. Brooke Glanden Is Raking
Not only does the sophomore first baseman lead the Blue Hens with a .467 batting average and 14 RBI, she's also hitting for power. Glanden has four doubles and two home runs for a team-high .767 slugging percentage.
Even when she's not slugging it, Glanden is staying disciplined at the plate, drawing a team-high seven walks.
"Brooke is really naturally gifted. She's big, she's strong, she has incredible reach, she can hit a lot of pitches, she can drive a lot of pitches out of the park," Steele said. "She continues to gain confidence by having good at-bats. Even when she's not getting hits, she's having a lot of quality at-bats, she's picking good pitches to swing at."
That combination of power and plate discipline has resulted in an eye-popping OPS (on-base plus slugging) of 1.335
4. Hanna Garber's Versatility Has Been Key At The Top Of The Lineup
Garber's speed was on full display during her freshman year in 2019 as she made the CAA All-Rookie team after leading off and playing center field every game and stealing 27 bases. But now in 2020, she's added an element of power to her game in addition to the speed.
"Hanna came to us as really a slapper; a singles hitter who would hit some doubles," Steele said. "She drove her first one out last weekend. She had the fastest home run trot you've ever seen."
In addition to her first career homer, Garber leads the Blue Hens with three triples, 11 runs scored and eight stolen bases. As a team, the Blue Hens have stolen 28 bases this year, a rate of 2.8 per game that ranks sixth highest in Division I.
🏃♀️🏃♀️🏃♀️#BlueHens No. 6⃣ in the country in steals per game! pic.twitter.com/nMW80K809P
— Delaware Softball (@Delaware_SB) February 20, 2020
"Not really thinking and just swinging has been helping," Garber, who is batting .361 so far this year, said. "I think mixing in a little slapping, bunt sometimes, when my swing isn't feeling as good has also been helping. But mainly just not getting down in the count, just swinging at good pitches."
5. Stringing Wins Together Has Boosted The Blue Hens' Confidence
Even though Delaware has returned much of its starting lineup from last season, a large chunk of those players are underclassmen who haven't experienced a lot of success at the collegiate level. Delaware finished eighth in the CAA in 2019 and was picked to finish eighth again in the preseason coaches poll. But being able to win so many games early this year, especially earning wins in different ways, has been a boost to the Blue Hens' confidence.
That confidence manifested in a dramatic walk-off win Sunday afternoon in the finale of the Cardinal Invitational. Trailing Cleveland State 3-2 in the top of the seventh, sophomore second baseman Brittney Mendoza belted a leadoff homer to tie the game at 3-3. After a Brooke Glanden double, sophomore third baseman Halle Kisamore homered down the left field line, giving the Blue Hens the 5-3 victory.
"I really saw it come into play Sunday when we were down against Cleveland State," Steele said. "We had only hit four or five home runs up until that point, and we had two in that inning. Winning eight games led to us being able to walk it off in that moment."
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