Despite Five Falcon Extra-Base Hits, Penn Outlasts BGSU, 6-5

Tuesday, March 10

Clearwater, Fla.

3:00 PM

Bowling Green State University

5-9

Penn

4-3

Bowling Green

Penn

Haley Schrock had a double, a homer & 3 RBI vs. Penn on Tuesday

March 10, 2015 | Softball

Box Score

Schrock, Falcons rally from multiple deficits, but Quakers push across a 5th-inning run & make it hold up

By: CLEARWATER, Fla. (BGSU Athletic Communications)

The Bowling Green State University softball team rallied from behind on multiple occasions Tuesday afternoon (March 10), but the University of Pennsylvania pushed across a fifth-inning run and made that final lead hold up. The Falcons fell, 6-5, to the Quakers at Eddie C. Moore Stadium in Clearwater.

Sophomore Haley Schrock and junior Molly Holliday each had big days at the plate. Schrock clubbed a double and a homer, scoring two runs and driving in three. Holliday was 3-for-4 at the plate with an RBI.

Senior Chloe Giordano had a pair of hits vs. the Quakers, including a run-scoring double in the third inning.

Five of the Falcons' 10 hits went for extra bases, including three doubles, a triple and the Schrock homer.

Penn (4-3) took an early 1-0 lead, and after the Falcons (5-9) tied the contest, the Quakers went up by a 4-1 score with a three-run third inning. BGSU, however, scored a pair of runs in the top of the fourth, and after Penn countered with a run in the bottom of the inning, the Brown and Orange scored twice in the top of the fifth to tie the game at 5-5.

BGSU would leave the bases loaded in the fifth inning, however, and after Penn scored what proved to be the winning run in the bottom of the frame, the Falcons again left three runners aboard in the sixth. BG got a two-out single in the seventh, but the runner was stranded there.

The Falcons got a runner to third base against Penn starting pitcher Lauren Li in the first inning, but she was stranded there. with one out, Holliday singled to left-centerfield and promptly stole second. She took third base on a sacrifice bunt by junior Marina Cobbs, but Li got a strikeout to end the inning.

The bottom of the first inning saw the Quakers register four hits, but just one run. Sophomore hurler Briana Combs got the first batter to ground out, but Leah Allen singled to left. After Allen stole second, Li singled up the middle, but Allen was cut down Allen attempting to score. Alexis Sargent, however, followed with a double down the left-field line, and Li scored the game's first run. Combs allowed an infield hit to put runners at the corners, but got the next hitter to ground out, ending the inning.

Schrock began the second inning with a homer to left. The round-tripper was her first of the year and the second of her BGSU career, and the game was tied.

In the bottom of the inning, Combs plunked the leadoff hitter with a pitch, but then struck out both Kanani Datan and Hayley Metcalf before getting Sydney Turchin to ground out to senior Emily McClelland at second base.

The Quakers scored three runs in the bottom of the third. Allen singled up the middle, and took second base on an infield hit by Li. Li was 3-for-4 at the plate on the afternoon. Sargent followed with a single that scored Allen and moved Li to third base.

Junior Braiden Dillow entered the game and got Korinne Raby to hit a popup to sophomore Aspen Searle at shortstop. And, Cedar Slovacek hit a fly ball to centerfielder Holliday for the second out. But, Vanessa Weaver's single up the middle scored a pair of runs and gave Penn a 4-1 lead.

Cobbs belted a leadoff triple to centerfield to begin the fourth inning, and one out later, Schrock doubled to left-center as Cobbs trotted home. Li got her second strikeout of the inning, with Giordano followed with the Falcons' third extra-base hit of the inning, whacking a double to left to score Schrock and bring the Brown and Orange within one run.

Penn made it a 5-3 game in the bottom of the fourth, when Turchin drew a one-out walk, stole second and scored on Li's two-out single up the middle. But, the Falcons would tie the game in the fifth.

Sophomore Sami Parave pinch-hit for McClelland, and singled through the right side of the infield to begin the inning. McClelland returned to the game, taking Parave's place on first base as the Quakers changed pitchers. Sargent entered the circle, but Searle greeted her with an infield hit that moved McClelland to second.

Then, Holliday's bunt got past the Penn infield, with McClelland scoring, Searle taking third and Holliday ending up on second. Sargent got a popup for the first out of the inning, but Sargent walked sophomore Trista Mokienko to load the bases, then issued a free pass to Schrock to allow Searle to trot home with the tying run.

Li worked out of the jam, however, getting a strikeout for the second out, then inducing the next Falcon hitter to ground out to third base.

The Penn half of the fifth saw Slovacek draw a one-out walk, and pinch-runner Vera Barnwell stole second. Dillow got Weaver to hit a grounder back to the circle for the second out, with Barnwell able to move to third. Pinch-hitter Jurie Joyner came through, with a two-out single to left-center that plated what proved to be the winning run.

But, the Quakers were not out of the woods just yet. Freshman Lauren Newmark drew a leadoff walk in the sixth inning, and McClelland sacrificed her to second base. Searle was hit by a pitch, and Holliday looped a Sargent pitch over the first baseman's head to load the bases.

Li returned to the circle, though, and got a swinging strikeout for the second out, followed by a popup to third base to end the threat.

Senior Jamie Kertes pitched the sixth inning for the Falcons, and worked a one-two-three frame, as the first two hitters grounded out to Kertes and the third, Li, hit a liner back to the circle for the third out.

Li retired the first two Falcons in the seventh inning, as Schrock fouled out to left, and pinch-hitter Kayla Gregory hit a ball to the left side. Gregory's grounder rolled out of Li's glove, but shortstop Katie Petroski was able to grab the ball and fire it to first for the second out.

Giordano singled to right, for her second hit of the game, but Alexis Borden entered the circle and got a game-ending strikeout.

Li picked up the win for the Quakers, despite allowing four runs and seven hits in five-plus innings of work. She did strike out seven Falcons without walking a batter. Borden picked up the save, retiring the lone batter she faced. Dillow, the second of three Falcon pitchers, took the loss.

The Falcons now return north, heading to Indianapolis for a Thursday afternoon (March 12). game against IUPUI. The next day, the Brown and Orange will begin play in the three-day IU Hoosier Classic in Bloomington. BG is slated to play a total of six games in the tourney, which runs from Friday through Sunday (March 13-15).