Comets continue to conquer the A.I.I.

Saturday, April 3, 2021
Cottey College infielders slap hands before an inning earlier this season. After the best start in program history, the Comets are 17-5 and in first place in the A.I.I.
File Photo by Hank Layton | Daily Mail Sports Reporter

Despite being without multiple starters for much of March, the Cottey College softball team has refused to lose.

At least, the Comets have refused to lose enough games to knock them out of first place in the Association of Independent Institutions conference.

Cottey won its first 11 games this season before coming back down to Earth and losing five of its next 11. The Comets’ 17-5 mark is still good enough for the top spot in the A.I.I. standings, one higher than 10th-ranked Georgia Gwinnett.

They’ve done it mostly at the plate. Cottey ranks first in all of the NAIA in home runs per game (1.59), third slugging percentage (.620), and fifth in runs scored per game (8.23) — with sophomores Aryana Palencia and Kristen Hurst leading the charge with seven and five home runs, respectively. Katie Fernandez, Lauren Johnson, and Elizabeth Thomas have also hit three dingers apiece.

Cottey’s pitching has been impressive at times, as well, led by sophomore Lacey Cruz, whose 7-1 record and 1.54 ERA (in 45 innings pitched) earned her the A.I.I. Pitcher of the Week award twice already.

Alyssa Montoya, also a sophomore, has pitched in 10 games and won five of them, with no losses. Her ERA sits at 2.51.

Head coach Mark Skapin has said he still thinks his squad is underperforming, but is confident the Comets will put it together for a run down the stretch.

Cottey — which has received votes for a national ranking but has yet to crack the top 25 — will close out April with doubleheaders against William Woods, Crowley’s Ridge, Columbia College, St. Louis College of Pharmacy, Ecclesia College, the University of Science and Arts, Sterling, Oklahoma City, Central Christian, and Oklahoma Wesleyan.

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