University of Tennessee at Chattanooga softball coach Frank Reed sat in the dugout long after the end of Sunday's game.
He's looking for answers, but it's obvious those won't be readily available.
The Mocs lost 5-1 to Connecticut in the final game of the Chattanooga Classic at Frost Stadium to fall to 3-6 this season. UTC finished 1-3 over the three-day event, defeating Radford 10-3 before losing to Tennessee Tech, IUPUI and the Huskies.
Pitching has been an early source of frustration for Reed. UTC brought in three freshmen at that position this season, but Celie Hudson is out with an injury. Payten Price, who started Sunday and took the loss, struck out eight but allowed two home runs in the fourth inning that broke a 1-all tie.
"We're going against good teams, and we've got to hold them," Reed said. "The same thing happened last year. We're fighting to put runs on the board, but it gets to a point where when a part of your game isn't where it needs to be, it has a tendency to spread to other parts of the game."
The Huskies took a 1-0 lead in the top of the first, but the Mocs responded with a run in the second. After a one-out double by Amanda Beltran, former Central standout Brook Womack singled to move Beltran to third and Emma Sturdivant had a sacrifice fly to score the UTC catcher.
UConn (2-2) scored two runs in the fourth on the homers by Valerie Sadowl and Chloe Kerns, then added two unearned runs in the fifth.
The Mocs started four freshmen and no seniors against the Huskies, but they aren't using that as an excuse as they navigate their way through the early schedule.
"We have a very talented team, and we have the capability to win the SoCon," said Sturdivant, a sophomore who went 1-for-2 with a double against UConn.
Sturdivant, who is starting in place of senior Jesslyn Stockard at first base, leads the team with a .421 average. Right behind her is freshman Aly Walker, who led the way with two hits Sunday and has a .417 average.
"We have to have a lot of young girls step up," Walker said. "We're playing with a really young team, but I don't think we can let the 'we're young' mindset keep us from going where we want.
"We're all Division I softball players, and we have to play like it."