Bowling Green State University Athletics
Bowling Green State University
NOTRE DAME
Notre Dame Stops Falcons, 8-5
April 18, 2002 | Softball
April 18, 2002
NOTRE DAME, Ind. - The Bowling Green State University softball team rallied from a four-run deficit to take the lead, but the host University of Notre Dame responded with a rally of its own Thursday afternoon (April 18). The result was an 8-5 win for the Fighting Irish in a non-conference game at Ivy Field.
The Irish improve to 25-13 with the win, while the Falcons drop to 14-21-1.
A homerun to dead centerfield by sophomore Jenifer Kernahan gave BGSU a 5-4 lead in the top of the sixth inning, but the hosts put four runs on the board in the bottom of the inning.
The Irish opened the scoring with an unearned run against senior Andrea Genter in the first inning. Megan Ciolli reached on a one-out bunt single, and took second on a Falcon error during an attempted pickoff play. Andrea Loman reached on another BG error, with Ciolli taking third. After a walk loaded the bases, Ciolli scored on a groundout by Andria Bledsoe. BG shortstop Libby Voshell then made a nice running catch of Lisa Mattison's popup into shallow center.
The Irish increased the lead to 4-0 in the third inning, doing all of their damage with two outs. Loman singled up the middle, and Jerrah Myers blooped a single that was just out of the reach of charging rightfielder Renee Rosemeier. Loman, running with the pitch, came around to score just ahead of the throw, with Myers moving to second.
Then, Bledsoe singled to score Myers, and Mattison drew a walk. Bledsoe stole third base, and came home on a single by Liz Hartmann.
The Falcons got on the scoreboard in the fourth. Senior Natalie Phillips hit a one-out double that ticked off the UND leftfielder's glove. Irish pitcher Steffany Stenglein then got Voshell to ground out, with Phillips holding at second. But, Phillips took third on a wild pitch, and Rosemeier drew a walk. Then, junior Crystal Wilson's looping liner fell just in front of diving centerfielder Jenny Kriech as Phillips scored.
BGSU got another run on a two-out rally in the fifth. Redshirt freshman Marla Murphy drew a walk, and scored when junior Kandice Machain laced a double that rolled to the wall in center.
The Falcons came all the way back with a three-spot in the sixth. Wilson reached on an infield grounder, her second hit of the day, and coach Leigh Ross-Shaw called on freshman Sara Edwards to run for Wilson.
The next batter, senior Holly Frantz, fouled off five pitches during an eight-pitch battle with Stenglein. On the eighth pitch, Frantz ripped an RBI double to right-center, with Edwards crossing the plate.
Carrie Wisen replaced Stenglein in the circle, and Kernahan greeted her with a homer over the 220-foot sign in straightaway center. The homer was Kernahan's first of the year and the second of her career.
The next batter, sophomore Jody Johnson, reached on a single, and took second on Murphy's sacrifice bunt, but Wisen got a grounder for the third out.
Notre Dame, now 10-1 at home this year and 28-1 over the last two seasons, rallied in the bottom of the sixth. Mattison beat out an infield grounder for a base hit, and Hartmann laid down a bunt. Pinch-runner Kas Hoag beat the BG throw to second base, putting runners at first and second with none out.
A sac bunt moved the runners to second and third, and pinch-hitter Annie Dell'Aria walked to load the bases. Kriech had an RBI single to tie the game, and Ciolli cleared the bases with a triple, the first extra-base hit of the day for the Irish.
Johnson replaced Genter, and walked the first batter before getting an infield popup and a groundout to end the inning.
In the seventh inning, BGSU got a baserunner on Rosemeier's two-out hit, but Wisen closed the door on the Falcons.
Wisen (11-4) picked up the win in relief, allowing one run and three hits in an inning-and-two-thirds. She did not issue a walk or strike out a batter.
Stenglein allowed four runs and five hits in her five-and-a-third innings of work. She issued four walks and fanned three batters.
Genter allowed nine hits and eight runs (seven earned) before leaving with one out in the sixth. She walked four batters and struck out two in seeing her record fall to 2-2 on the year.
Johnson walked one batter in her two-thirds of an inning.
UND outhit the Falcons by a narrow 9-8 margin, with Ciolli the lone player to have two hits for the hosts. For BGSU, both Rosemeier and Wilson had two hits, while Kernahan had a pair of RBI.
Frantz had a run and an RBI, and threw out two of the three Irish runners attempting to steal.
The Falcons will return to action with a pair of Sunday (April 21) games at arch-rival Toledo. That Mid-American Conference doubleheader is scheduled to begin at 1:00 p.m. at UT's Scott Park.
