MAY 3 2003

 

COLLEGE SCORES

Big 12 Tournament

Oklahoma 1, Baylor 0

Nebraska 6, Texas A&M 4

Oklahoma 3, Oklahoma State 2

Texas 2, Nebraska 0

 

Southland Tournament

Texas-Arlington 4, Northwestern State 0 (Mavericks undefeated; Katy Cox 13 Ks)

 

Top 25 Teams

Michigan State 2, Michigan 0

Northwestern 6, Illinois 0

California 10, Arizona State 1 (5)

LSU 2-0; Florida 8-4 (split)

Houston 7-5; South Florida 2-0 (split)

Oregon 6, Washington 5 (8)

Kentucky 7, Iowa 4

DePaul swept Louisville 2-0, 5-1 (Blue Demons have won C-USA)

Louisiana-Lafayette 1-0; Western Kentucky 3-2 (8) (split)

Alabama 7-5; Georgia 7-3 (split)

UCLA vs Oregon State (halted in 2nd by rain)

Arizona and Stanford were tied 1-all; no final when SPY published

 

Other College Scores

Ohio State 4, Penn State 1 (Kristi DeVries goes 2-3; pitches win; affects Big Ten race)

Tennessee 12-2; Ole Miss 7-6  (split) (Vols were ahead 6-0 before Rebels rallied)

Fairfield def Manhattan 1-0, 8-0

Purdue 6, Indiana 0

Providence 2-0; Pittsburgh 1-0 (split)

Yale def Fairleigh Dickinson 5-3, 6-1

Akron def Buffalo 3-2, 4-0 (Kelly Omerza HR and two doubles)

Southeast Missouri 4-0; Eastern Kentucky 4-1 (split) (Alana Bagby-Leonard 2 HRs)

Portland State 2-1; Santa Clara 5-2 (split)

Wichita State 1-0; Southern Illinois 3-1 (split)

Utah 7, BYU 2; BYU 1, Utah 0 (split)

Harvard 1-0; Dartmouth 2-1 (split)

Western Washington 7, Seattle 1 (Megan McPhee and Rachel Laitala two HRs each)

Western Washington 1, Seattle 0  Amanda Grant pitches two-hitter; wins in 7th)

Northern Illinois def Central Michigan 8-0, 6-5 (8)

Illinois-Chicago 8-7; Youngstown State 6-1 (split)

Princeton 8, Brown 5 (Tigers win Ivy League championship)

Princeton 10, Rider 2 ((Melissa Finley double, triple and HR; Tigers win invitational)

Cornell def Quinnipiac 5-1, 5-4

Stony Brook def Binghamton 3-2, 5-4

U Mass def Central Connecticut 4-3, 3-2

Northern Iowa 4-1; Evansville 5-4 (split)

Marist def Niagara 9-2, 6-3

George Mason def James Madison 6-5, 6-4 (Jen Schultz hitting keys both victories)

Bowling Green def Eastern Michigan 5-1, 4-2

Toledo 3-1; Ball State 4-1 (split)

Boston College def St. John’s 8-0, 5-3

Rhode Island def George Washington 7-0, 8-1

Butler 4-3; Cleveland State 4-3 (split)

East Carolina def St. Louis 2-1, 2-1

Monmouth def Mount St. Mary’s 2-1, 2-1

UC Riverside def Utah State 15-3, 6-3

Elon def Charleston Southern 6-0, 11-3

Nevada 8-1; Tulsa 5-2 (split)

Seton Hall def Connecticut 11-5, 6-3

 

Senior Sandy Lewis came through on Senior Day, belting a walk-off home run to propel Michigan State past No. 13 Michigan. Melissa Finley had a 3-for-3 day with her 10th homer of the season against Rider. Sarah Wieszczak
Sandy Lewis Kristin Schmidt Melissa Finley Sarah Wiesczak

 

Game Notes Big 12

Oklahoma won its 19th shutout of the season, eliminating Baylor from the Big 12 meet on Saturday morning, 1-0.  Erin Evans, Leah Gulla and Kelli Braitsch (rbi) singled in the first inning for the only score.  Kami Keieter hurled a two-hitter.  The Sooners were to face Oklahoma State late Saturday afternoon, the third meeting this year between the two in-state rivals, who split the earlier contests.

 

Nebraska scored five runs over the first two innings thanks in large part to Kim Ogee and went on to eliminate Texas A&M from the Big 12 Tournament, 6-2. Ogee started the Huskers' onslaught with a leadoff homer in the top of the first and followed with a three-run double in the second.

Texas A&M did some damage in the bottom of the fourth after a throwing error allowed a pair of Aggies to cross the plate. The rally was thwarted, however, on a key out at third base and Nebraska escaped without further injury. The Huskers added an insurance run in the top of the seventh and it proved to be helpful as Texas A&M responded with two runs in the bottom of the frame and nearly added another.

A&M's Adrian Gregory tripled to score Cheryl Fowler from first and Gregory later scored on a Kristin Gunter single. Then, with Nebraska leading 6-4 and A&M runners on first and second, Jana James wrapped a single to center. Selena Collins was held at third base but headed home after the throw from the outfield got by Husker catcher Amber Burgess. The NU backstop chased down the ball and flipped it to first baseman Sheena Lawrick who applied the tag on Collins at the plate to end the game.

Husker freshman pitcher Summer Tobias threw a complete game, giving up nine hits, two walks and two earned runs while striking out five. Tobias improved to 14-4 on the year. Lindsay Wilhelmson went the distance for A&M and surrendered two earned runs on 11 hits while fanning six. She dropped to 16-7. Nebraska will face top-seeded Texas tonight at 7:30 p.m.

Oklahoma edged Oklahoma State 3-2.  Fourth-seeded Oklahoma jumped to an early 3-0 lead and withstood a sixth-inning, two-run Oklahoma State homer to hold off the second-seeded Cowgirls, 3-2, in Saturday evening Big 12 Tournament play at ASA Hall of Fame Stadium. The OU victory means the teams will meet again on Sunday morning, at either 8:30 (if Nebraska beats Texas tonight) or at 10 (if Texas beats Nebraska ).

The Sooners tallied a run in the top of the second when Heather Scaglione crossed home plate on a Lauren Bay wild pitch. OU added two more runs in the third on a Kelli Braitsch RBI single and a Scaglione double that scored Braitsch.  Oklahoma sophomore pitcher Kami Keiter was cruising along until the sixth inning when OSU catcher Ryan Realmuto belted a two-out, two-run homer over the left field fence to cut the OU lead to one. Keiter retired the next batter and shut down the Cowgirls in order in the seventh to seal the win.

The lefty improved to 29-6 on the year and 3-1 in the Big 12 Tournament this weekend (she shut out Baylor earlier today). Keiter gave up just four hits and a walk while fanning seven Cowgirl batters.

Bay, the Big 12 Player of the Year, pitched two innings and gave up one run (unearned) on one hit and three walks. She struck out three Sooners but took the loss to fall to 24-8 on the year.

Texas defeated Nebraska 2-0 on a two-out, two-run homer by Sarah Wiesczak in the bottom of the 7th.  A typically well-pitched game by Catherine Osterman (2 hits, 11 Ks) was virtually matched  for six innings by Peaches James (4 hits, 9 Ks).  The loss was particularly painful for the Huskers who loaded the bases in the 6th with no outs but couldn’t score.  Nebraska began the game threatening the Longhorns when Kim Ogee walked and Nicole Trimboli singled, but the first of two Texas double plays helped erase the threat.  Texas had a double from Tina Boutelle in 3rd with two out, and Wynter Turner singled in the 4th, but, after a sac bunt, James struck out the next two batters.  Osterman struck out six of the first 13 batters she faced, and struck out the side in the 3rd and 5th.  In the 6th, Jessica Yoachim reached on an error by Osterman; Ann Steffan followed with a single, and both advanced on an error by Turner at 3rd.  Ogee was issued an intentional walk to load the bases, but Nicole Trimboli lined out to Chez Sievers at short who made an unassisted double play, also retiring Steffan.  Buchholz grounded out.  Nebraska went down in order in the top of the 7th.  Texan Tamara Poppe ground out to 2nd before Amber Hall slugged a double into right field.  Sam Murphy struck out.  Wiesczak, the #8 batter, then slugged her game-winning home run.  The loss eliminates Nebraska .  Texas will play the winner of the 10:45 am Oklahoma-Oklahoma State rematch at 2pm .

Notes on Other Games

Michigan State created a tie for first place in the Big Ten on Saturday when it upset leader Michigan, 2-0, on a Sandy Lewis one-out, two-run walk-off home run in the bottom of the 7th.  The Wolverines were a half-game ahead of Iowa , and can win the Big 10 outright by defeating the Spartans on Sunday – when the venue moves from East Lansing to Ann Arbor .  The Big Ten tournament, which begins next weekend, will be held on the home field of the regular season champion.  Regardless of the Big Ten outcome, Michigan will host an NCAA regional in two weeks.  The stakes were equally large for the Spartans, who were 12-6 in April and will be in the Big Ten tournament but are hoping for an NCAA berth.  Saturday’s game matched Michigan ’s Marissa Young against Michigan State ’s Jessica Beech.  Each team had 5 hits but the Spartans were knocking on the door much of the afternoon.  The Wolverines had seven base runners (one on a walk, one hit by a pitch) and only struck out three times, but, two runners were thrown out stealing by Spartan catcher Lacy Hauxhurst.  In the 4th, Michigan had two runners on, two-out singles by Monica Schock and Jessica Merchant, but Beech struck out Young for the third out.  Beech gave up another single to Schock to lead off the 7th but the next three batters hit deep fly balls to Lewis in center field.  The Spartans had two runners on in three innings, and the bases loaded in the 5th.  Wolverine catcher Schock threw out one runner, and Young closed out three innings with Ks – she had 9 including 7 of the 9 Spartan starters.  State fans roared in the 4th when Brittany Green jacked a shot to left field, but Melinda Moulden denied the home run, catching the ball as it cleared the top of the fence.  In the 5th, Janette Hurtado led off with a single to left; Hauxhurst laid down a perfect bunt and Michigan tried to nail Hurtado at 2nd but she beat the throw.  Beech, pinch-hitting for DP Robyn Golden, flew out deep to Meagan Doe in center, and Angel Merren struck out, but, Lewis, who had doubled in the 3rd, was hit by a pitch to load the bases.  Grace Leutele caught Margaret Schick’s pop-up outside 3rd to end the inning.  The Spartans mounted another threat in the 6th: Natalie Furrow popped to short, ending her 11-game hitting streak; Tiffany Wallace singled to left; Green was hit by a pitch, but, Hurtado hit a very high popup to Young who then struck out Hauxhurst.  The bottom of the 7th did not start auspiciously for Michigan . Back in the lineup, Golden hit a popup to the right of the plate, which dropped foul between Schock and 1st Liz Elsner.  With new life, Golden hit a roller which Leutele initially couldn’t field but then made an errant throw to 1st, where Golden tumbled to the ground but was safe.  Young threw fast ball away to Lewis, which seemed to hang fractionally, and the senior slammed it over the fence for the win.  Michigan and Iowa are both 13-4; the Hawkeyes have ended their conference season but could win the Big 10 if Michigan loses again on Sunday.  Michigan vs Michigan State is one of the NCAA’s oldest and most partisan rivalries; supporters of both teams packed Old College field today.

 

Northwestern improved its chances for a berth in the Big Ten tournament with a 6-0 win Saturday over Illinois .  With Penn State ’s 4-1 loss to Ohio State on Saturday, the Wildcats need either a win Sunday over Illinois or a Penn State loss to advance to the conference tournament.  Northwestern is now 10-9 Big Ten.  Courtnay Foster, named last week by both national polls as National Player of the Week, struck out 10 of the Illini who are now in a virtual tie with Michigan State for third place, Big 10. Foster has not given up an earned run in 38.2 innings. Cindy Muran and J.C. Kira homered for the Wildcats, while Carri Leto (3-4) scored the first and only needed run.  Muran’s 2-run HR following Erin Mobley’s single built a 3-0 lead.  Kira connected in the next inning.  Seven Wildcats had at least one hit.

California (40-14; 9-7 Pac-10) hit three home runs, scoring three runs in the first and third innings and four more in the fourth inning to defeat Arizona State (29-20; 6-11 Pac-10), 10-1, in a run-rule five inning game.

 Cal started quickly in the first when Courtney Scott hit a three-run home run off ASU starter Desiree Serrano (17-13) for the 3-0 lead.  ASU answered in the second inning with its only run of the game when Keri Pulcifer hit a solo home run to left field to cut the lead to 3-1.

However, Cal posted three more runs off two Sun Devil errors in the third off ASU reliver Cheryl Evans.   Scott opened with a double and Veronica Nelson was intentionally walked. Jessica Pamanian then put down a sacrifce bunt, but Evans throw to first was wide and hit Pamanian, allowing Scott to come home, while right fielder Valerie Sevilla’s throw to third to get Nelson was high and wide, letting Nelson come home for the 5-1 lead. Cal tagged on one more when Chelsea Spencer singled in Pamanian.

The game then closed with four more Cal runs, including back-to-back home runs by Scott and Nelson in the fourth inning.

Up next, the Sun Devils play one more against California on Sunday at 1:00 p.m.

LSU and Florida split Saturday’s double-header, the Tigers winning 2-0, the Gators winning 8-4.  LSU is 20-8 SEC, and guaranteed a second place finished in the SEC Western Division.  Florida is 18-11 SEC.  The teams meet again on Sunday.  In the SEC tournament next weekend, the Tigers will play the sixth-place team, likely Auburn .

Kristin Schmidt recorded her 13th complete-game shutout of the season to improve to 30-10. She becomes just the second pitcher in LSU history to record 30 victories in a year. The junior from Houston allowed five hits and one walk in the game. She also struck out 11, her second straight
double-figure strikeout total and the seventh of the season. LaDonia Hughes led the team with a 4-for-8 performance and a run scored in the doubleheader. Alicia Owen recorded a double and an RBI in the first game. Christy Connor hit her ninth home run of the season in game two,
while Julie Wiese recorded her team-best 17th double with two RBIs in the second game.

 Florida threatened early in game one. With two outs in the bottom of the first, Schmidt gave up a walk and back-to-back singles to load the bases. She got out of the inning with her second strikeout of the game. The Tigers broke through in the top of the fourth inning. With one out, Tessa Lynam drew a walk. On a double to left center by Owen, Lynam scored on a close play at the plate for the 1-0 LSU lead.

In the top of the sixth inning, the Tigers extended the lead to 2-0. Wiese and Lynam led off the inning with back-to-back singles. With one out, Jennie Reeves reached on a fielder's.  A single up the middle by Smith scored Lynam from third.  With one out in the bottom of the seventh, Florida recorded back-to-back singles to put runners on first and second. Schmidt then got Jackie Marchetta to fly out to centerfield before Laura Templeton struck out to end the game.

Jenny Gladding took the loss for Florida to drop to 19-12 on the season. She allowed two runs on six hits with four walks and seven strikeouts in five and a third innings. Amanda Moore came on relief in the top of the sixth and did not allow a hit with one strikeout.

In the second game, the Tigers took the early lead. Fitzgerald doubled to right center. Connor then nailed her ninth home run of the season to right center for the 2-0 LSU advantage.

 Florida stormed back to take the 4-2 lead on a grand slam in the bottom half of the inning. After Lynam walked the bases loaded, she gave up the bases clearing home run to Lindsey Cameron. The Tigers threatened in the top of the second. With one out, Leigh Ann Danos drew a walk. On an infield single by Blair Smith, Reeves, pinch running for Danos, advanced to second and put runners on first and second. After a fielder's choice by Megann Steege got Reeves at third, Hughes singled to load the bases. Fitzgerald struck out to end the inning with the bases loaded.

In the bottom of the third, Florida added another run. With one out, Florida recorded three singles in a row to load the bases, Cameron then hit a sacrifice fly to left field that scored Jennifer Brown, pinch running for Gladding at third. Lynam struck out Andrea Magura to end the inning.

With three runs in the bottom of the fourth, the Gators extended their lead to 8-2. Florida took advantage of three hits, two LSU errors and four stolen bases in the inning (eight stolen bases for the game).  In the top of the fifth, the Tigers cut the Gator lead to 8-4. Steege and Hughes led off with back-to-back singles. After Fitzgerald came up just short of a home run to left field and Wiese hit one out of the park just foul down the left field line. Wiese doubled to right centerfield, scoring both Steege and Hughes.

Lynam recorded the complete-game loss to fall to 15-3 on the season. She allowed eight runs, seven earned, on 11 hits with three walks and three strikeouts. Mandy Schuerman started the game for Florida . She went a third of an inning, allowing two runs on two hits with a walk. Amanda Moore came on in relief to throw six and two-thirds innings. She allowed two runs on
seven hits with a walk and three strikeouts.

The series will conclude with a single game on Sunday at 10 a.m. CT. The contest marks the final regular game for LSU before the SEC Tournament, which begins on May 8 and runs through May 12. The Tigers are the two-time defending champions and have won three of the last four.

Oregon upset Washington 6-5 on catcher Jenn Poore’s solo HR in the eighth. With the win, the No. 19 Ducks improved to 29-16 overall, 7-10 Pacific-10 Conference while Washington fell to 40-12-1, 7-10. It is Oregon 's first win over Washington since 1999.   Oregon senior Andrea Vidlund (5-1) picked up the win while freshman Amy Harris, who was relieved by Vidlund in the sixth inning, came back in the eighth to get her fifth save of the season.

Oregon senior Amber Hutchison put the Ducks on the board first, hitting her third home run of the season - a deep shot over the left field fence at Husky Stadium.   Washington evened the score in the bottom of the fourth inning when designated player Kristen Rivera scored an unearned run with two outs in the inning. Harris then walked Amy Hanson to load the bases, but struck out pinch hitter Megan Owen to prevent the Huskies from scoring the go ahead run.

Oregon 's offense capitalized on Husky mistakes to take the lead in the 5th.  Breanne Sabol led off the inning reaching on an error by Clark and Hutchison reached after being hit by an Ashley Boek (17-4) pitch. Oregon right fielder Beth Boskovich then drove in Sabol with an RBI single down the left side and senior Andrea Vidlund added to the lead, driving Hutchison in with a hit to left field. The Huskies then brought in All-American pitcher Tia Bollinger to replace Boek, but an RBI by Laux scored Boskovich and an RBI single by catcher Jenn Poore scored pinch runner Jackie Eliades to put Oregon ahead 5-1.

Washington rallied in the bottom of the sixth inning, scoring three runs with two outs to pull within a run, 5-4 and tied the game in the seventh with Clark 's 12th home run of the season.

The Ducks have not won seven conference wins since notching 10 victories in 1999 and are now tied for fourth in the conference.   Oregon and Washington face off again tomorrow at Husky Stadium at 1 p.m.

Iowa fell to Kentucky 7-4 (a game which does not affect Big Ten standings) – the first victory Kentucky has achieved over a ranked team in 2003.  Iowa scored first on a Stacy May HR in the 1st inning, and added a run in the 3rd. Freshman Lori Melchi and senior Lyndsey Angus led off the 4th inning with singles. Junior Rachel Friberg hit a shot down the left field line. Melchi would score and Angus and Friberg advanced. UK pitcher Amy Kendall blasted the first pitch from Iowa 's Lisa Birocci into left center field, Kendall 's sixth double of the year; both runners scored for a 3-2 UK lead. Jessica Nance scored on an Iowa throwing error, 4-2.

Three Kentucky errors paved the way for two Iowa runs which knotted the score at four.  The Wildcats would take the lead right back in the top of the fifth. Senior Nikki Jones led off with her second infield hit of the game. After a sacrifice bunt moved her to second, Lyndsey Angus walked for the 27th time this year, breaking the UK single season record. Angus owns the top four spots on that list.  The Hawkeyes changed pitchers following the walk and new hurler Ali Arnold got Friberg to ground out. With first base open and two outs, Iowa decided to intentionally walk Kendall, who had doubled the inning before.  Nance knocked a three-run triple down the right field line to  put the Cats ahead 7-4.  Kendall retired all six Hawkeye batters in the sixth and seventh innings to gain her 11th win of the year. She gave up four hits and struck out five.

Louisiana-Lafayette split with SBC foe Western Kentucky .  Senior Kristalyn Smith belted a game-winning RBI double in the bottom of the eighth to lead the Western Kentucky University softball team (28-28, 5-7 Sun Belt Conference) to a 3-2 victory over No. 22 Louisiana-Lafayette (39-7, 11-3 SBC). Freshman Adrienne Lathrop scattered four hits and allowed one earned run as the Hilltoppers picked up their second-ever win over ULL and their first top 25 win of the season.

The Ragin Cajuns rebounded with a 1-0 win in game two, breaking a 0-0 tie through seven innings by pushing across a run in the top of the eighth. Junior Allison Silver surrendered just one hit through seven innings, but suffered the loss as the Hilltoppers were unable to do any better against ULL's Afton Thoms.

The two teams conclude their four-game set with a Sunday doubleheader scheduled to start at noon (CST).

Alabama and Georgia split. The Bulldogs (53-10, 22-6 SEC) jumped out to an early 1-0 lead in the first inning of game one. Nicole Barber led off the inning with a walk and advanced to second after a sacrifice bunt by Katie Lewis. Barber advanced to third on a passed ball and scored on a wild pitch.

Georgia plated three runners in the fifth to extend its lead to 4-0. Amy Brannan led off the inning with a walk and advanced to second after a single by Barber. Lewis laid down her second sacrifice bunt of the day to move pinch-runner Michelle Tyree and Barber into scoring position. Tyree scored on a fielder¹s choice off the bat of Kim Wendland and Barber followed after an errant throw by the first baseman Jackie McClain that advanced Wendland to second.

Alabama responded with seven runs on five hits in the sixth to take a 7-4 lead. The Crimson Tide¹s seven runs marked the most runs scored by a Georgia opponent this season.

The Bulldogs tallied one more run in the sixth after Nicole Barber led off with a triple, and later scored on a fielder¹s choice by Lewis. Michelle Green (36-7) pitched six innings and allowed seven runs, while striking out nine. Laurie Davidson pitched one scoreless inning of relief.

In game two, Ashley Courtney hit a lead off home run in the first inning that put the Crimson Tide out to an early 1-0 lead. Alabama¹s run in the first inning marked only the fifth time an opponent has scored on Georgia in the first inning.

Courtney Knight reached base on a double to left-center to lead off the fourth inning. Ashley Godfrey advanced Knight to third on a sacrifice bunt. Jade Jarvis scored pinch runner Jessica Malcom from third with a sacrifice fly to center field, knotting the score at 2-2.

Georgia manufactured one run with two outs in the fifth inning to jump out to a 3-2 lead. Shannon McKeon reached base on an error and advanced to second after a single by Knight. Godfrey¹s RBI single into left field scored McKeon.

Alabama evened the score in the sixth inning after leadoff batter Lacy Prejean hit a solo homerun over the center field fence.

The Bulldogs erupted for four runs in the sixth inning to take a 7-3 lead. Brannan and Barber began the inning with walks and Lewis reached base on an error. With the bases loaded, Wendland hit a fielder¹s choice to Jen Reach at shortstop, scoring Tyree. Reach¹s throw home sailed over the catcher¹s head allowing Barber to score. Katie Lewis scored on a sacrifice fly by Green and Wendland scored on a wild pitch.

Lacey Gardner started on the mound for the Bulldogs in game two and pitched 2.1 innings, allowing one earned run and striking out two. Davidson came in relief and faced three batters, allowing no runs and one hit. Green pitched the final 4.1 innings and recorded a win, scattering one run on one hit, striking out seven. The Bulldogs will return to action tomorrow for the final game of the series. The winner of the game will clinch the SEC Championship and enter the SEC Tournament as the No. 1 seed. First pitch for the contest is scheduled for 2 p.m. on Fox Sports South.


UCLA and Oregon State started the first night game in the history of Easton Stadium on Saturday night, but the game was halted in the bottom of the second inning due to rain. Oregon State leads the Bruins by a 2-0 margin, although the Bruins have two runners on and nobody out in the bottom of the second inning. The game will be resumed at 11 am on Sunday, prior to the regularly scheduled game between the Bruins at Beavers at 1 pm

 

 

 

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