[media-credit name=’JEFF SCHORFHEIDE/Herald Photo’ align=’alignright’ width=’336′][/media-credit]
If it were up to head coach Chandelle Schulte, Wisconsin would play UW-Green Bay for more than the yearly doubleheader in its current schedule.
The Badger softball team swept a pair of nonconference games Wednesday against its in-state rivals to the north, taking the first game 6-1 and the nightcap by a score of 4-1.
“Maybe we should play them 50 times,” Schulte said. “[The rivalry] is really important. We’re supposed to be here in Madison and be the best [in the state] at softball. So I think it’s huge. It’s something that is very important to us every year.”
In the second game, Wisconsin rode the performance of sophomore pitcher Letty Olivarez — not only in the circle, but at the plate as well.
Olivarez pitched all seven innings for the Badgers, allowing only one run on two hits while striking out a season-high 10 batters. She also sparked the offense in the third with a two-run home run, making the score 3-0 and putting Wisconsin ahead for good.
“I think just being happy [helped my performance],” Olivarez said. “I had a good attitude; I was hitting well so that kept me up.”
For Olivarez, the home run was her third in the past four games. She also wore a protective sleeve over her right forearm — her pitching arm — but it did not seem to affect her performance.
“[It affected me] a little bit, but not so much,” Olivarez said. “I did have to put a hard piece on my arm to protect it, and that did affect my leg; I got a pretty big bump there.”
Olivarez may want to join her coach in petitioning to play UW-Green Bay more often. Her victory Wednesday was her second against the Phoenix. In last year’s outing she had a career day, striking out a personal-best 12 batters.
“You have those guys that, the other pitchers they face, they just own them,” Schulte said. “It doesn’t matter where they throw the ball, they’ve got their number. So for Letty, maybe Green Bay is that team for her.”
One of the similarities to last year’s matchup with UW-Green Bay was the decision to allow catcher Joey Daniels and Olivarez to call the game, rather than receiving the calls from the bench.
“We just wanted to try something a little bit different,” Schulte said. “It worked out very well. I think it empowers the pitchers a little bit to feel like they are part of the process instead of just throwing the ball. You’ll see it again against Ohio State.”
In Wednesday’s first game, junior Leah Vanevenhoven also pitched seven strong innings, allowing just one run on two hits and striking out eight.
Vanevenhoven believes that facing a team like UW-Green Bay, which doesn’t have as much offensive power as other teams the Badgers have faced, helped her pitch a better game.
“I was just throwing my stuff,” Vanevenhoven said. “Offensively, I didn’t feel as though they were very strong, so I felt like I had more leeway with my pitches. I also was keeping them off-balance with my changeup — I think it’s the most I’ve used my changeup all year.”
Vanevenhoven benefited from her teammates’ strong offensive performance, something that has been lacking of late.
“We finally put together two very complete games,” Vanevenhoven said. “We’ve been struggling with it all year — the three aspects of the game — so I think we know now that we can get it done.”
Wisconsin was led offensively in the first game by senior shortstop Lynn Anderson, who went 2-for-3 with a solo home run in the fourth to give the Badgers the lead — one they would not relinquish.
Maintaining a lead had been a troublesome aspect of late for the Cardinal and White. UW scored first in each of its games Sunday against Illinois, only to let it slip away in the end.
“It’s the two best games we’ve played all year, regardless of the opponent,” Schulte said. “We had yet to play a complete game, and we just played two. The hitting, the pitching, the defense were finally there.”
Schulte added that the team’s success stemmed from two great pitching performances — the first time this season the team saw its starters go the distance in consecutive games.
Wednesday’s twin bill was significant for another reason, as the Badgers won back-to-back games, something they had not done since February when they won three straight in Las Vegas.
The Badgers hope the momentum from the sweep will continue into the weekend as they return to Big Ten play Friday against Ohio State.
“[The game against] Ohio State will have a little more strategy, but it will be a similar philosophy,” Schulte said. “If we play like this — today — the next four games, we’ll go to the Big Ten tournament.”