.png&type=webp)
Bowling Green State University Athletics
Bowling Green State University
BUFFALO
Johnson's Pitching, Rango's Blast Give Falcons 4-0 Win, DH Split at Buffalo
April 15, 2004 | Softball
April 15, 2004
Final Stats -- Game One
Final Stats -- Game Two
BUFFALO, N.Y. - Senior Jody Johnson threw a complete-game one-hitter, and sophomore Gina Rango tied a school record as the Bowling Green State University softball team blanked the University at Buffalo by a 4-0 count. The win gave the Falcons a split of Thursday's (April 15) Mid-American Conference doubleheader, as the host Bulls had picked up a 1-0 win in the opener at Nan Harvey Field.
With the second-game win, the Falcons are now 18-21 overall and 5-5 in MAC play, while UB is 13-16 and 4-4, respectively.
The win enabled Falcon head coach Leigh Ross-Shaw to tie the school mark for wins in MAC games. Ross-Shaw, already the winningest coach in BGSU history, picked up her 78th conference victory to match former Falcon coach Jacquie Joseph. Ross-Shaw is now 155-136-2 in her sixth season as the Falcon head coach, and she is 78-50 in MAC play. Joseph, now the head coach at Michigan State, was 78-71 in MAC games at BG. Ross-Shaw passed Joseph on the overall wins chart last May.
Rango hit a three-run homer in the second-game win, her sixth round-tripper of the season. That ties the school record held by three other players.
Rango, in just her second year in a BG uniform, now has 11 career homers, tying her for fourth place on the BGSU career list. The school record is 14, held by Lynsey Ebel (1998-2001).
In the opening game, UB scored a first-inning run and made it hold up for a 1-0 win. Buffalo ace Stacey Evans won a battle with Falcon sophomore Liz Vrabel.
The Bulls got the game's only run when Shannon Prochaska's two-out pop fly dropped in shallow rightfield, allowing senior Breanne Nasti to score from second.
Buffalo threatened in both the fourth and the fifth innings. In the fourth, Prochaska had a leadoff single, stole second and took third on a single by Melissa Pace. She was then tagged out at the plate on an attempted squeeze bunt play, as Vrabel's throw to catcher Abby Habicht was in time. The Bulls loaded the bases with one out, but Vrabel got a popup to shortstop for the second out, then got Marce Ross to strike out looking to end the inning.
The Falcons got out of another bases-loaded, one-out jam with one out in the fifth, with Vrabel getting Pace to pop up to third and Allison Round to strike out. But, the Falcons never could mount a serious threat against Evans.
BG got a runner as far as second base in the opening inning, but Evans got junior Kristen Anderson to ground into an inning-ending fielder's choice. In the sixth, a Lindsay Heimrich single and an Anderson walk put two runners aboard with two down, but Evans got a strikeout to end that threat, then retired the Falcons in order in the seventh for the win.
Evans scattered five hits in the shutout win, improving to 7-6 on the year. In the process, she extended her current streak to 43 2/3 innings pitched without allowing an earned run. Evans walked a pair of batters and struck out seven.
Vrabel allowed only the one run, but saw her record drop to 8-11. She gave up seven hits, walking two batters while whiffing four.
At the plate, Heimrich had two of the Falcons' five hits. Prochaska had a pair of hits and the game's lone RBI for the Bulls.
The nightcap also began as a low-scoring battle, as Johnson and UB starter Sophie Barstad matched zeroes through the first three innings. The only hit during that time was a first-inning single off the bat of Rango. But, the Falcons broke the scoreless deadlock in the fourth.
In that fourth frame, the Brown and Orange got a pair of hits and benefitted from a pair of UB errors to go on top. With one out, Anderson singled down the left-field line. Senior Jenifer Kernahan then reached on a fielder's choice, with Anderson safe at second on an error by the Bulls' shortstop.
Barstad got Stephanie Finkel to hit into a fielder's choice, with Anderson retired at third for the second out of the inning. But, Habicht then reached on an infield single which loaded the bases. Pinch-hitter Kari Steigerwald then reached on another UB error, with Kernahan scoring on the play, before Barstad got an inning-ending strikeout.
The top of the order struck for three quick runs in the fifth. Freshman Jeanine Baca and Heimrich had back-to-back singles to start the inning, then scored on Rango's homer to left-center.
Meanwhile, Johnson was sailing along. The only hit she allowed came off the bat of Barstad, a line-drive single down the left-field line with one out in the fifth. Johnson walked three batters and struck out five in improving to 7-6 on the season.
Barstad allowed four runs (three earned) and eight hits in her complete-game effort, striking out six batters without issuing a walk. She dropped to 6-4.
At the plate, Rango had three hits in four at-bats to lead all players. She also had three RBI, of course, all coming on the homer. Anderson had a two-hit game for the Brown and Orange.
The Falcons now return home for a three-game weekend series vs. Ball State University. The Falcons and Cardinals are scheduled to play a Saturday (April 17) doubleheader and a Sunday (April 18) single game, with first pitch slated for 1:00 p.m. each day at the BGSU Softball Field.
NOTES
