Errors plague UNC softball in devastating losses

After allowing five unearned runs in Wednesday’s doubleheader against James Madison, it was a comedy of errors for the North Carolina softball team.

But Coach Donna Papa wasn’t laughing.

The Tar Heels committed five errors on the day, including four in the final game, which left the coach disgusted with her team’s performance.

“I’m so, so disappointed in our execution — or lack of execution — defensively,” Papa said. “I’m not going to take anything away from their team, they beat us.

“(But) we made some mistakes and they wound up costing us.”

In the first game, which UNC lost 5-3, the Tar Heels held a slim lead in the fourth before an Erin Satterfield overthrow brought two runs home.

And in the team’s devastating 7-0 defeat, North Carolina saw three runners cross the plate as a result of its poor fielding.

“We haven’t had four errors in one game all season. I don’t even know if we’ve had them in one week,” said a harshly disappointed Papa. “That’s been something we haven’t really had to worry about, and for some reason today we did.”

Papa did praise the infield defense of junior Kristen Brown, but even the sure-handed shortstop wasn’t immune to the mayhem.

“Errors are going to happen, it’s the game of softball,” said Brown, who committed two blunders of her own in the second game. “We need to do better with communication, just got to know where the ball’s going.”

It was this communication — or lack thereof — that most frustrated the UNC coach.

“Our focus wasn’t good out on the field,” Papa said. “We didn’t talk. We talked to them in between games about talking, making the right calls.

“Obviously, there wasn’t enough focus or they didn’t want it bad enough.”

Brown commended the efforts of the starting pitchers, whose groundballs put the infielders in the best position to make routine plays.

But for freshman Sydney Matzko — who allowed four runs, but only one earned — the team's miscues are a collective effort.

“We win as a team, and we lose as a team, so I take as much responsibility as anyone,” said Matzko, after giving up six hits in the second game. “If they are putting the ball in play, it’s my part, too.”

But the errors weren’t confined just to the infield.

In the second game, freshman Dani Garcielita misplayed a sixth-inning double and lobbed it over her teammate's head, sparking a three-run outburst from the Dukes to put the game away.

“To overthrow the second baseman on a ball that’s hit right in front of you ... ” said a perturbed Papa, unable to fully express her frustration. 

Following a game with so many critical mistakes and so few positives, Papa can only look to the future and hope her team recovers.

“I still have confidence in our team, have confidence in our defense," Papa said. "We just had a really rough, bad (day).

"Why bother coming out to play if you’re not going to make plays?"

sports@dailytarheel.com