NU softball team focuses on defense for upcoming tournament

Bittersweet was the word to best describe the Husker's 3-3 outcome in the Kajikawa Classic last weekend.

But, like a breath of fresh air, Nebraska is ready to play softball again.

This Friday, the No. 22 Huskers travel to Las Cruces, N.M., to compete in the Troy Cox Classic where they will battle five teams in three days.

The Huskers are coming off a tournament where they faced three top-25 teams in No. 8 Arizona, No. 12 Washington and No. 23 Georgia Tech, and won three games out of six, including an 11-10 comeback win against the Wildcats.

During those four days, the defense committed 13 errors, while the pitching staff allowed 37 runs.

The tournament also marked the beginning of three new Husker careers.

Freshman Mattie Fowler said that although it was a rough weekend, she was happy to finally start her collegiate career.

"It's been something I've been waiting for my whole life," she said. "To go out there and represent the Huskers was an amazing feeling."

In that weekend, Fowler was one of seven NU players to commit an error, but the mishap didn't reflect her overall play. Coach Rhonda Revelle said the freshman did everything she asked of her.

"She played very solid at third base and I think she's done exactly what we thought she'd do," Revelle said. "She was very game savvy and showed a lot of poise for a freshman."

Third base wasn't the only position Fowler played, as she also was one of three to start in the circle for her team. Fowler was the starting pitcher in NU's 12-4 win against Idaho State, but she gave up four runs on four hits in two innings of work. He teammates backed her up by producing a nine-run fourth inning. Although it wasn't the start she'd hoped for, the freshman was happy to help out her team.

"I was nervous, but they were good nerves," Fowler said. "I was just hoping to help my team out any way I can. Unfortunately, it didn't turn out the way I wanted it to, but we all helped each other out."

Fowler made her first career pitching start just 10 minutes after game two ended, which might have played a role in the freshman's outcome, according to Revelle.

"We didn't even plan to pitch her that much, since she hasn't in a while," Revelle said. "We also got her innings because we weren't even sure if Tatum (Edwards) was going to be able to pitch."

"We're trying to reduce some of her responsibilities and just let her become comfortable."

Although Fowler won't be pitching in the upcoming tournament, she will be playing a different position.

Fowler will be moving to shortstop while Gabby Banda, who committed five errors last week, will take over at the hot corner.

The poor defensive play is not the reason for the move, though, Revelle said.

"Banda played (third base) during her freshman year and is comfortable there," Revelle said. "Mattie played shortstop when she was younger, so we just decided to switch them. "We're planning to play them there throughout the whole weekend."

Fowler said she's confident in playing her old position again.

"We're all confident and well-balanced," she said. "We know we can back each other up and have a solid defense as long as we're communicating."

The Huskers start their first game of the tournament against Colorado State on Friday at 3 p.m.

One thing Revelle hopes to see from her team is an improvement in defense.

"We've worked a ton on getting our defense back to the consistent form that it was last year," Revelle said. "I'm just hoping to see them get more comfortable and up to par like our offense is."

Last weekend, Nebraska averaged six runs a game in a mix of different lineups made by Revelle. But the Huskers are also hoping to improve their margin of runs with their opponents this weekend.

In their previous tournament, NU outscored their opponents by one, 38-37.

Fowler, who bounced back and forth between the second and seventh spot in the lineup with Banda, said she's happy with wherever Revelle puts her in the lineup.

"It's all about battling while I'm up there and scoring runs for the team," she said.

neduizu@dailynebraskan.com