April 26, 2009
Tuscaloosa, Ala. - Alabama pitcher Kelsi Dunne struck out a season-high 14 and held the Tigers without a hit as the sixth-ranked Crimson Tide defeated Auburn softball 6-0 Sunday afternoon.
Auburn dropped to 28-23 overall and 8-17 in the Southeastern Conference. Alabama improved to 43-8 overall and 19-6 in the SEC.
Dunne earned the win to move to 23-2 on the season. It was her second no-hitter of the season. Dunne walked one, with that coming to Tatiana Fernandez in the seventh inning with one out. Auburn's only other base runner came when Myesha Finney reached on a wild pitch on a swinging third strike in the second inning.
The last time Auburn was no-hit was against Tennessee in an 8-0 loss on March 19, 2006.
Jenee Loree took the loss to drop to 12-9. Loree allowed five runs, two earned, on five hits in 4.2 innings of work. Loree walked three and fanned one. Anna Thompson threw the final 1.1 innings, allowing one run, earned, on two hits with one walk and three strikeouts.
Alabama took advantage of a pair of Auburn miscues to plate the first runs of the game in the bottom of the fourth. Cassie Reilly-Boccia was hit by a pitch to open the bottom half of the inning and moved to second when Jennifer Fenton's ground ball to second was misplayed by Cassie Trosclair. Ashley Holcombe reached on a fielder's choice which forced Reilly-Boccia out a third.
Fenton and Holcombe moved to third and second, respectively, on a double steal. After a walk to Kellie Eubanks loaded the bases, Whitney Larsen hit a ground ball to Kyndall White at third who threw home, but catcher Elizabeth Eisterhold was unable to snare throw as it rolled to the backstop and allowed a pair of runs to score.
Brittany Rogers followed with a ground ball to Trosclair at second, but Trosclair threw home attempting to get Eubanks. The throw was late and Eubanks' run made it a 3-0 Alabama lead.
The lead was pushed to 4-0 in the bottom of the fifth inning when Holcombe laced a two-out single to right-center to score pinch-runner Lisa Elizondo from second. Elizondo ran for Reilly-Boccia who drew a one-out walk.
Still in the fifth, Holcombe gave Alabama a 5-0 lead when she scored on a delayed steal. Eubanks, who singled, broke for second but was chased back to first after the throw to second by Eisterhold. During the play, Holcombe broke for home and scored without a throw being made.
In the sixth, Charlotte Morgan singled home Lauren Parker, who doubled to open the inning, to give Alabama a 6-0 lead. Montalvo, who was hit by a pitch after Parker's double, moved to second on Morgan's RBI single.
That would cap the scoring as Dunne set the Tigers down in the seventh to preserve the no-hitter.