Marshall University Athletics
Softball Fights Past Falcons
3/31/2004 12:00:00 AM | Softball
Softball Fights Past Falcons
3/31/2004
- Game One Box Score
- Game Two Box Score
BOWLING GREEN, Ohio ? The Marshall University softball team produced back-to-back eight-hit games to down Mid-American Conference foe Bowling Green, 4-2 and 10-1, on Wednesday at Bowling Green Softball Field.
Game One: Marshall 4, Bowling Green 2
Marshall (22-14, 4-0) started early after Jessica Williams (Powder Springs, Ga.) and Sierra Davenport (Tucson, Ariz.) singled, but faded after Mid-American Conference pitching leader Liz Vrabel struck out six straight batters.
The scoreless tie was broke in the top of the third inning as J. Williams singled, was sacrificed to second by a Davenport bunt and driven home off Amanda Williams? (Powder Springs, Ga.) eighth double of the year. An error by the Falcon second baseman off a hard-driven Leigh Wintter (Acworth, Ga.) groundball, pushed A. Williams home and a Sarah Wilson (Washington, W.Va.) scored Wintter for a 3-0 lead.
In the bottom of the fourth, Ashley Zirkle?s first collegiate home run broke a Randi Nielson (Tucson, Ariz.) no-hitter. Bowling Green (12-16, 2-3 MAC ) would then rally for another run in the next frame after a Gina Rango double scored one. The Herd escaped the fifth after Rango left third early in an attempt to score on a sacrifice fly to left field saving the MU lead.
Abigail Harter (Monmouth, Ore.) would enter the game in the sixth inning after Nielson gave up a single, bringing up Zirkle. Harter struck out two and forced a grounder to get the Herd out of the sixth frame.
With the score 3-2, J. Williams picked up her third hit of the game ? a double to left field ? advanced to third on another Davenport sacrifice bunt and scored via a Falcon shortstop error off A. Williams to give the Herd its final score and the game, 4-2.
Nielson (10-7) struck out two and gave up four hits to move to double digit wins on the year. Harter picked up the save. Vrabel is now 6-9 this season.
Marshall outhit BG 8-5 in the contest, including five from the Williams sisters.
Game Two: Marshall 10, Bowling Green 1
Marshall utilized four Falcon errors in the fifth inning to grab a 10-1 win in game two at Bowling Green Softball Field.
MU didn?t get the offense started until the fourth inning when A. Williams scored following a Wintter single and a costly Falcon throwing error that landed in the BG dugout.
BG retaliated in the same inning when Rango hit a one-run shot over the left field fence to knot the game at 1-1.
The Herd struck again in the following frame when Jennifer Susman (Lewisbug, W.Va.) reached first due to an obstruction call on the Falcon catcher. Her pinch-runner Ashley Mitchell (Kennesaw, Ga.) scored, as did Sara Spenia (Las Vegas, Nev.) and Courtney Kacenga (Sierra Vista, Nev.) off BG errors, before A. Williams hit her conference-leading fourth triple of 2004 to send J. Williams home. An illegal pitch by BG hurler Jodi Johnson resulted in the Herd?s fifth score of the fifth.
A pinch-running Jennifer Jones (Proctorville, Ohio) scored off a J. Williams RBI single and Davenport followed up with a clutch bunt hit to score Kacenga. A. Williams then connected on her second triple of the game to score J. Williams and Davenport and leave the score at 10-1.
Sarah Chamberlain (Moses Lake, Wash.) worked six innings giving up only two hits for the win.
"We found ways to get on base and get scores today and that was great to see," head coach Shonda Stanton said. "We hit the ball well against one of the best pitchers in the conference and showed no let down in the second game."
The Herd produced its second consecutive eight-hit game, while a stingy MU defense allowed only four baserunners in the six inning affair.
Marshall plays at home this weekend in a three-game routine, as Toledo pays a visit for a doubleheader on Saturday and a single game on Sunday.
