Bowling Green State University Athletics
Bowling Green State University
EASTERN MICHIGAN
Falcons Win in 10, 2-1, on Vallas Walk-Off Hit
April 22, 2006 | Softball
April 22, 2006
BOWLING GREEN, Ohio - There is no listing for 'career walk-offs' in the Bowling Green State University softball recordbook. It's pretty safe to say, however, that the name 'Allison Vallas' would be pretty high on such a list.
The Falcon sophomore, for at least the fourth time in her career, had the decisive plate appearance in a home victory, singling up the middle to score senior Gina Rango in the bottom of the 10th inning for a 2-1 win over Eastern Michigan University Sunday afternoon (April 22). The Mid-American Conference game was held at the BGSU Softball Field.
With the victory, the Falcons improve to 29-18 overall and 10-5 in MAC action, while dropping the Eagles to 20-22 and 8-5, respectively.
Last April 30, Vallas had a walk-off hit in each end of a doubleheader sweep of Buffalo at the BGSU Softball Field, and she drew a bases-loaded walk to force home the winning run in a 3-2 victory over Ohio two weekends ago (April 9).
On Saturday, Vallas' hit made a winner of senior Liz Vrabel, who allowed just four hits in a complete-game performance. Eastern scored a total of 26 runs in Friday's doubleheader sweep of Toledo, but the Falcon senior allowed just one run in 35 batters faced.
That one run came early, as Lauren Clark hit a two-out, solo homerun to rightfield in the top of the first. The run was only the second allowed by the Falcons in the first inning this season.
BGSU, however, would answer, getting an unearned run in the bottom of the inning. Sophomore Dawnjene DeLong ripped a liner past EMU rightfielder Lindsay Schmid for a one-out double, and took third base on a grounder by Rango. Freshman Desiree Miller followed with a grounder that went through the legs of third baseman Heather Han, with DeLong scoring to tie the game.
The Falcons got a pair of hits in the second inning, as seniors Abby Habicht and Lindsay Heimrich each singled to leftfield. The batter in between, junior Ashley Zirkle, also hit the ball hard, but EMU shortstop Clark made a diving grab just above her shoetops and threw to first to double Habicht off base.
Neither team had another baserunner until Clark's next at-bat. The Eagle slugger lifted a popup off the end of the bat into shallow right, and neither second baseman Megan McPherson or rightfielder Zirkle could reach the ball. It dropped between the two fielders for a bloop double. On the next pitch, however, Schmid popped up to Heimrich at first base, and Heimrich threw to DeLong to retire Clark, who was running on the play.
The Eagles got a baserunner in the fifth, as Nikki Denman was hit by a Vrabel pitch to begin the inning. Han pushed a bunt to the third-base side of the circle, and Vrabel threw her out at first, but the sacrifice bunt moved pinch-runner Ann Meikle to second. The senior hurler responded by striking out Katie Grens on three pitches, and Kayla Bluthardt's soft liner was right at leftfielder Vallas for the third out.
In the bottom of the inning, junior Jeanine Baca lined a Denman offering, and wound up on second as the ball rolled all the way to the fence in right-center for a two-out double. DeLong, the next batter, hit a soft liner, but the shot was right at second baseman Bluthardt for the third out.
The Eagles got a leadoff baserunner in the sixth, as Kelly Gulliver's seeing-eye grounder rolled up the middle for a single. Three pitches later, however, Habicht gunned a throw to shortstop DeLong to thwart Gulliver's stolen-base attempt. Vrabel then got Ashley Strauss to hit a 3-2 fly ball to left-center, where Baca made the catch for the second out, and a strikeout of Heather Giroux ended the inning.
In the bottom of the inning, leadoff hitter Rango fouled off Denman's second pitch, and the ball hit Rango in the side of the face. The reigning MAC Player of the Year was forced to leave the game, with Natalie Armintrout completing the at-bat, but was able to return to the game in the top of the seventh.
Vrabel struck out the first two batters in the top of that seventh inning, and worked some magic with her glove against the third hitter. Denman hit a hard one-hopper right back at Vrabel, and she made a stab at the ball. Her glove fell to the ground with the ball still in the webbing, and the senior hurler quickly picked up the ball and threw to Heimrich at first to retire the side.
Zirkle hit a blooper to shallow left to lead off the bottom of the seventh, but leftfielder Gulliver came charging in and made a nice sliding catch for the first out. The next batter, Heimrich, hit a hard grounder past the circle, and shortstop Clark could not come up with the ball as Heimrich reached on the error.
McPherson moved pinch-runner Emmy Ramsey to second base with a well-executed bunt, but Denman was able to get a grounder back to the circle for the third out, sending the game to extra innings.
In the eighth, Bluthardt and Gulliver drew back-to-back walks with two outs, but centerfielder Baca made a nice running catch of a drive by Strauss, just one step before running into the fence, to retire the side.
DeLong drew a walk of her own to lead off the bottom of the eight, and Rango moved the runner to second base with a well-placed sac bunt. Miller hit Denman's next pitch hard, but the liner was right at third-baseman Han for the second out, with DeLong scrambling back to second.
Denman issued her second four-pitch walk of the inning, putting Vallas on base, and prompting EMU to replace Denman in the circle with Aimee Woodrum. Woodrum was able to get a foul pop to retire the side.
Vrabel set the Eagles down in order in the top of the ninth, culminating with a strikeout of Schmid, and Heimrich worked Woodrum for a one-out walk in the bottom of the inning. McPherson replaced her on base after a fielder's choice grounder, and McPherson took second on a two-out passed ball. But, first baseman Strauss made a nifty sliding catch of Baca's foul pop in front of the Eastern dugout.
McPherson's glovework aided Vrabel and the Falcons in the top of inning number ten. After Denman led off the inning with a single up the middle, Han hit a hot grounder that seemed as if it might find the outfield grass. McPherson, however, dove toward second to snare the ball, then flipped it with her glove hand to DeLong to force pinch-runner Stephanie Sabo at second.
The next hitter, Grens, laid down a bunt, and Vrabel threw to McPherson covering at first base. Grens was initially ruled safe, but after a visit to the field by head coach Leigh Ross and a conference involving the three umpires, Grens was ruled out. EMU coach Karen Baird's ensuing discussion with the folks in blue was to no avail, as the out call stood, and there were two down. After fouling off four consecutive pitches, Bluthardt hit a looper that was easily gloved by the charging McPherson for the third out.
That set the stage for the bottom of the inning. After Woodrum got an infield popup for the first out, Rango drew a walk, and Miller moved her to second with a sac bunt. The next hitter was Vallas, who worked the count to 2-1 before lining Woodrum's next pitch back up the middle. Rango steamed around third, losing her batting helmet on the way home, and her slide beat the throw of centerfielder Giroux, ending the contest.
Vrabel's 10-inning performance improved her record to 15-9. She walked two batters and struck out eight, throwing 83 of her 139 pitches for strikes.
For their part, the Eastern Michigan hurlers had numbers that were just as impressive. Denman allowed only an unearned run and five hits before leaving with two outs in the eighth. She walked three Falcons and struck out one. Woodrum, who dropped to 6-6 on the year, allowed only one hit -- the Vallas single -- in her two innings, walking a pair of batters.
At the plate, Habicht had two of the Falcons' six hits, while Clark had half of Eastern's hit output, with a double and the homerun.
The same two teams will conclude the two-game series with a Sunday (April 23) contest at the BGSU Softball Field, beginning at 1:00 p.m.
