.png&type=webp)
Bowling Green State University Athletics
Bowling Green State University
AKRON
Falcons, Zips Trade Shutouts; Win Streak Snapped at Seven Games
April 14, 2005 | Softball
April 13, 2005
Game 1 Stats -- BGSU 9, Akron 0 (6 inn.)
Game 2 Stats -- Akron 3, BGSU 0
AKRON, Ohio - The Bowling Green State University softball team increased its season-high winning streak to seven games Wednesday evening (April 13), but the Falcons' streak would end there. BGSU and the University of Akron traded shutouts at Firestone Stadium, with the Falcons winning the opener by a 9-0 final in six innings, but the Zips bouncing back with a 3-0 decision in the nightcap.
The Falcons are now 20-21 on the season, and BGSU is 6-5 in Mid-American Conference play. UA is 19-17 and 3-9, respectively.
In the opening game, the Falcons got on the board right away. Junior Lindsay Heimrich and sophomore Jeanine Baca drew one-out walks against Akron starter Tina McCauley, and junior Gina Rango turned those walks into runs with an opposite-field homerun to right-centerfield. The homer was Rango's second of the season, and extended her school-record career total to 16.
In the bottom of the first, Rebecca Stern reached base on an infield error, but was out after leaving the base too early on a steal attempt. That mistake would prove to be costly, as the next hitter, Sara Zilles, lined a triple into the right-field corner. Zilles was stranded there, however, as Falcon junior Liz Vrabel got a pair of strikeouts to end the inning.
The Falcons looked to be in business again in the second inning. Freshman D.J. DeLong was hit by a pitch to lead off the inning, and junior Abby Habicht followed with a grounder to third. Zip third baseman Kerry Omerza's throw to second base, however, was wide and sailed into right-center, putting runners at second and third with no outs.
The next hitter, Kari Steigerwald, popped up for the first out, but UA first baseman Kelly Quigley threw wide of third in an attempt to double up DeLong, and the freshman was able to score the Falcons' fourth run of the game. BG's second-inning run came without benefit of a hit.
Vrabel allowed two baserunners in the bottom of the second, on a walk and a bloop single, but got out of the two-on, one-out jam with a pair of strikeouts, giving her five through two innings.
UA threatened in the fourth, as Quigley began the inning with a seeing-eye single, and Omerza followed with a blooper to left-center. But, Vrabel proceeded to strike out the next three hitters.
BGSU blew the game wide open with a five-run sixth, kick-started by a pair of UA errors. With one out, DeLong reached second base on an Akron miscue. The next hitter, Habicht, singled through the left side of the infield, and DeLong came around to score when the ball got past the UA leftfielder, the Zips' fifth error of the game. Then, Habicht scored on a single by sophomore Megan McPherson.
Heimrich drew her second walk of the game, and the Falcons scored another run when Baca's scorcher nearly took McPherson's head off near second base. McPherson got out of the way as the ball went all the way to the wall. The double scored McPherson and sent pinch-runner Lauren Hoffman to third.
Rango drew a walk to load the bases, and freshman Allison Vallas gave the visitors a 9-0 lead with a two-run single to right.
Vrabel retired the Zips in the bottom of the sixth, aided by a nice running catch by senior Kristen Anderson in rightfield, and the Falcons had the win.
Vrabel improved to 11-9 on the season, with her second complete-game shutout of 2005. She scattered six hits, walking three batters and striking out 12 in her six innings.
The five UA errors led to six of the nine BG runs being unearned. McCauley took the loss for the Zips, allowing seven runs (only three earned) and five hits before leaving with two outs in the sixth. She had one wild pitch and hit two batters. Megan MacKenzie got the final out of the sixth, allowing two hits, two walks and two runs.
For the third consecutive game, Rango reached base in every plate appearance, with the homer, two walks and one hit-by-pitch. Baca was 2-for-3 with a pair of runs scored, while DeLong also scored a pair of runs.
Zilles was 2-for-2 for the hosts, while Becky Santonastaso had two hits in three trips.
The second game began as a pitchers' duel, as McCauley and Falcon freshman Emily Gouge each allowed only one hit through the first three innings. BG's only safety was an infield single by McPherson to lead off the game, while Akron had just a Santonastaso single in the second inning.
The Zips had just two hits through four innings, but got some hits, as well as some runs, in the fifth. The inning started when Santonastaso's soft liner landed just inside the left-field line for a leadoff double. On the next pitch, Amy Pedro advanced the runner to third with a sacrifice bunt. Then, Rachel Kraus lined a double into the gap in left-center to score Santonastaso with the Zips' first run of the evening.
UA wasted little time in scoring a second run. Kraus, who had taken third on a BG error, came in to score on a bloop double by Zilles. The Zips led by a 2-0 count after five.
McCauley set the Falcons down in order in the top of the sixth, and the Zips began the bottom of the inning with a double by Omerza. Vrabel entered the game in relief of Gouge, and got MacKenzie to fly out to Baca in center for the first out. Omerza took third on Santonastaso's groundout, but Omerza scored on a wild pitch, just eluding Vrabel's tag attempt at the plate. Vrabel struck out Pedro to end the inning, but the Zips now had a three-run lead.
In the seventh, Baca began the inning by reaching on an infield hit, just the Falcons' second hit of the game, and Rango beat out a tapper toward the circle, putting two runners aboard with none out. But, McCauley got a strikeout of Vallas for the first out of the inning, then whiffed Anderson for the second out. She got Angie Ortiz to pop up to clinch the shutout.
The Zips outhit the Falcons, 6-3, in the second game, with Omerza and Santonastaso each going 2-for-3 with a run scored.
McCauley got the win with a complete-game three-hit shutout, walking two Falcons and striking out five. Gouge took the loss to drop to 5-3, snapping a five-game personal winning streak. She allowed three runs and six hits in five innings of work, with two walks and five K's. Vrabel retired all three batters she faced in the second game, with one strikeout.
The Falcons return home for a three-game weekend series vs. Eastern Michigan, including a Saturday (April 16) doubleheader and a Sunday (April 17) single game. First pitch is scheduled for 1:00 p.m. each day at the BGSU Softball Field.
NOTES
