Better Late Than Never: BG Offense Wakes Up For 6-3 Win Over WKU

Monday, March 7

Bowling Green, Ky.

3:00 pm

Bowling Green State University

Western Kentucky

March 07, 2011 | Softball

By: by Jason Knavel, Assistant Athletic Director for Athletic Communications

Boxscore

Bowling Green, Ky. – Through the first seven innings of Monday afternoon's softball game against Western Kentucky, the Bowling Green State University offense was dormant. But the Falcons scored five runs in extra innings to post a 6-3 victory over the Hilltoppers.

Erika Stratton broke open a 3-3 tie in the top of the 10th with a two-out bases loaded double that scored three runs. Stratton's game-winner came just as it appeared that Western Kentucky pitcher Dana Nathanson would wriggle out of a jam in the frame.

With international tiebreak rules in place, Katie Yoho was awarded second base to start the inning. Lindsey Arney walked and Hannah Fulk ripped a single, her fourth hit of the day, to load the bases with none out. Facing two of Bowling Green's best hitters, Nathanson got Rachel Proehl to foul out to catcher and Paige Berger to pop out to first. That brought Stratton to the plate and she stroked a double to centerfield that cleared the bases.

Stratton's heroic effort came just two innings after it appeared the Berger had given the Falcons the win. The sophomore slugger hit a two-run homer to straight-away centerfield in the eighth inning that gave Bowling Green a short-lived 3-1 lead. However, Western Kentucky's Amanda Thomas pounded a two-run bomb in the bottom of the inning to tie the score back up at 3-3.

Western Kentucky did bring the tie run to the plate in the bottom of the 10th after Thomas was awarded second base to start the inning. BGSU pitcher Zada Lines walked the next batter but did not allow any of the next three hitters to get the ball out of the infield and the Falcons escaped with the win.

The Falcons appeared to have the offense going early as Fulk led off the game with a single. She moved to second on a sacrifice bunt, stole third, and scored on a throwing error by the Western Kentucky catcher. That gave Bowling Green a 1-0 lead but the Hilltoppers tied the score in the bottom of the second on an RBI single. But the two teams failed to plate any more runners until extra innings.

Lines got the win for Bowling Green, pitching the final 5.2 innings, allowing two earned runs and striking out eight. Melissa Bott allowed just one earned run over the first 4.1 innings.

Fulk had the second four-hit game of her career and scored three runs in a game for the first time. Besides Fulk's performance, Berger's eighth-inning homer and Stratton's 10th inning three-run double were the only Falcon hits.

Western Kentucky falls to 11-5 with the loss and Bowling Green improves to 2-9. The Falcons will continue its Spring Break trip with a doubleheader at Middle Tennessee State Tuesday at 3 p.m.