CCU Softball has had a tough stretch since Saturday's win over Lynn University in Clearwater, FL. In the six games since, the Cougars have struggled to find their collective groove at the plate, resulting in a six-game skid that has the squad sitting at 2-8 on the young season.
 
The losses continued Thursday, as the road-tested Colorado Christian squad traveled to St. Petersburg, FL to face the Tritons of Eckerd College. Eckerd beat CCU in back-to-back games, winning 7-0 and 6-3 thanks to a powerful showing at the plate that included three doubles, a triple, and five homeruns in two games combined.
 
The day's opener featured an unrelenting EC team that caught fire for nine hits – four of them bombs over the outfield fence. Doing the majority of their scoring early, the Tritons beat up a staff of three Christian pitchers, hanging six on the board before the close of the third inning. While Eckerd heated up, the Cougars stalled, managing just four hits without a single run.
 
Though Katie Edison (0-3) picked up the loss, the junior pitcher shared time in the circle with newcomers Tana Feiner and Jennie Winston. The trio allowed seven earned runs on nine hits, walking two and striking out six. Feiner's effort included a season-best five strikeouts in just four innings of work.
 
Though defeated at the start of the finale, CCU turned things around in game two. An early score off an illegal pitch got things going for the Cougars, who went into the third up by a run. That's when a Danielle Romine triple to right field brought Sarah Rasmussen home, moving the board to 2-0. Rasmussen kept the scoring going with a one-RBI single in the fourth, giving the blue and gold the positive momentum they'd been chasing for the past several games.
 
Unfortunately, Eckerd wasn't done causing damage for the Cougars. An impressive six-run effort in the fourth inning paralyzed the Christian squad, and eventually proved enough to assure the win for the home team.
 
The evening's loss went to senior pitcher Mariah Bledsoe (1-3), who allowed eight hits and five earned runs in three and a half innings of work. Feiner again pitched relief, wrapping the game with two Ks and just one allowed hit.
 
One more series remains on the Florida schedule for the Cougars – they'll travel to Tampa for a Valentine's Day doubleheader at University of Tampa. CCU lost 2-0 to the Spartans on Sunday, the final day of the Eckerd Invitational.