Auburn Softball Team Splits Two With California Schools
Box Score
February 20, 2004
Sara Ghezzi |
SAN DIEGO â€" The Auburn softball team allowed a sixth inning rally to Cal State-Northridge to fall 3-2 before mounting its own sixth inning rally against Sacramento State to pull out a 6-2 victory.
The Tigers move to 13-3 on the year but had their seven-game win streak snapped.
Trailing 2-1 entering the sixth inning, Auburn got a leadoff double from Holly Currie. Kristina McCain followed that with a walk and the pair advanced on Lauren Walton's sacrifice.
Sara Ghezzi then provided the big hit, a single to left that scored Currie. As McCain headed towards third, Steph Lockhart's throw sailed to the backstop allowing the go-ahead run to score.
Ghezzi and Lolani Alvarez, who reached on a fielder's choice, later scored on Sara Dean's double to the right-centerfield wall.
Dean had homered in the same direction one inning earlier to get the Tigers on the board.
Currie started and allowed a pair of runs on five hits in five innings. She earned the win to improve to 4-0 on the year. Kristen Keyes entered in the sixth to close out the game. She struck out four in two innings without allowing a hit.
In the first game, Northridge capitalized on a pair of Tiger errors to score two sixth inning runs to rally from a 2-1 deficit. Laura Hovestreydt led things off with a double. Jen Dishner then reached when Ashley Griffin's throw pulled Martha Phillips off first base.
Hovestreydt scored when the ball popped in and out of Kristina McCain's glove on Emilee Moores shot to third. Sondra Milchiker brought home the winning run with a two-out bloop double down the right field line.
Auburn jumped out to an early lead by scoring twice in the top of the first inning. Shannon Anderson drew a one-out walk and moved to third on Sara Dean's double that was roped to left center. A wild pitch brought Anderson home.
Phillips reached on an infield single and stole second. A throwing error by catcher Jan Moshier on the play allowed Dean to score.
Northridge answered with a run of their own in the bottom of the first. Dishner singled on a bunt and made it all the way around the bases when Dean's throw ended up in right field and got past Sara Ghezzi to roll all the way to the fence.
Auburn, which has suffered all three losses in the opponents final at bat, squandered a number of opportunities in the game.
In the first, the Tigers had the bases loaded with one out after scoring the first two runs and failed to score again.
The Tigers had runners on first and third with two outs but the inning ended when Lindsey Chitwood was caught stealing.
The Matadors, which was outhit five to four, took advantage of four Auburn errors to score three unearned runs on pitcher Kristen Keyes. Keyes was brilliant early, getting her first 10 outs via strikeout. She fell to 6-3 on the year despite striking out a season-high 14 batters, walking none and not allowing an earned run.
Erin Sigala picked up the win to move to 2-0. She went the distance for Northridge and struck out six while walking three.
Auburn faced Sacramento State immediately following the Northridge game on Friday night. The Tigers face host San Diego State and No. 4 Washington in back-to-back games beginning at 7:30 p.m. CST on Saturday.