March 5, 2011
Oklahoma City, Okla. - Auburn pitcher Jenee Loree registered a career-high 10 strikeouts to help lead the 24th-ranked Tigers to a 4-3 victory over No. 19 Oklahoma State Saturday. Auburn defeated Illinois-Chicago 3-2 in the first game of the day.
Auburn improved to 17-1 on the season with the two wins. Oklahoma State dropped to 14-4, while UIC fell to 5-7.
The Tigers will play Oklahoma State again, with the next meeting taking place in Stillwater at 11 a.m. Sunday.
"I am really proud of the way this team fought and got two wins today," Auburn head coach Tina Deese said. "Our senior leaders stepped up and kept the team going and didn't let us lose focus. Jenee did a great job against Oklahoma State. After a rough first inning she really settled down and kept them off balance."
In game two of the day, Morgan Estell's RBI double in the fourth inning capped a 4-3 come-from-behind victory for the Tigers over the OSU Cowgirls.
Loree (4-1) earned the complete-game victory, her first win over a ranked opponent since defeating No. 18 North Carolina on Feb. 7, 2009. Loree allowed three runs (all earned) on five hits with two walks and 10 strikeouts. Loree allowed just one hit after the first inning and retired 13 consecutive hitters as the Tigers rallied.
Kat Espinosa (8-1) took the loss in relief, allowing one run (earned) on two hits in three full innings of work. Simone Freeman started and went three innings, allowing three runs (all unearned) on three hits.
The 19th-ranked Cowgirls put up three runs on four hits in the top of the first inning. Oklahoma State got an RBI fielder's choice from Alyssia Hamilton and scored another run on a throwing error by Auburn first baseman Morgan Estell. The Cowgirls put up the third run on an RBI single by Chelsea Garcia.
The Tigers answered in the bottom of the first. Estell reached on a throwing error by OSU third baseman Mariah Gearhart and moved to third on a double to left by Kyndall White. Lauren Guzman lofted a sac fly to center to push Estell across and make it a 3-1 game.
Auburn tallied a run in the bottom of the second inning to make it a 3-2 game. Kelsey Cartwright reached on a passed ball on a swinging third strike. A sac bunt by Hilary Mavromat moved Cartwright to second and a dropped pop-up on a bunt by Katie Colton moved Cartwright to third. With two outs, an illegal pitch was called on Freeman, scoring Cartwright to make it a one run game.
Auburn continued its run-an-inning attack to tie the game in the third inning. White singled but was thrown out on a fielder's choice bunt by Lauren Guzman. Guzman quickly stole second. Amber Harrison laced a single through the right side that right fielder Sammy Diffendaffer mishandled, allowing Guzman to score and even the game at 3-3.
In the bottom of the fourth inning, Estell gave the Tigers the lead with a two-out RBI double down the line in right field. Caitlin Stangl singled with two outs and then stole second. Estell followed with her fourth double of the season to score Stangl and give Auburn a 4-3 lead.
After allowing three runs in the first and issuing a two-out walk in the second, Loree settled into a groove and retired the next 12 consecutive Oklahoma State hitters. Loree struck out four and allowed just two balls hit out of the infield during that stretch.
In the top of the seventh, Loree made it 13 straight when she forced Garcia into a fly out to right for the first out of the inning. Diffendaffer broke the string of retired batters with a single to center to put the tying run aboard. Ashley Boyd followed with a walk to put runners at second and first with just one out. Loree recovered and recorded the second out of the inning with a swinging strike three of Kelsea Schultz. Loree closed the door on a potential rally when she forced Amy Graham to pop out to third to end the game.
In the first game of the day, Amber Harrison's RBI single in the sixth inning proved to be the difference in Auburn's 3-2 victory over Illinois-Chicago. Auburn improved to 16-1 with the win, while UIC dropped to 5-7.
Lauren Schmalz started and earned the win to improve to 8-0. Schmalz went four and one-third innings, allowing one run (earned) on five hits with three walks and six strikeouts. Angel Bunner notched her first save of the season, and fourth of her career, by going the final 2.2 innings, allowing one run (earned) on one hit with no walks and two strikeouts.
UIC starter Ashley Hewett took the loss to fall to 3-2. Hewett allowed two runs (both earned) on one hit with five walks and three strikeouts in two full innings of work.
Four walks, two coming with one out, in the top of the second produced Auburn's first run of the game. Elizabeth Eisterhold and Amber Harrison walked to open the inning and moved to second and third on a sac bunt by Kelsey Cartwright. Hilary Mavromat drew a walk to load bases and Katie Colton's five-pitch walk forced Baylee Stephens, who pinch-ran for Eisterhold, home for a 1-0 Auburn lead.
Still in the second, Morgan Estell looped a two-out infield single to third that plated Harrison and gave the Tigers a 2-0 lead.
Illinois-Chicago cut the Auburn lead in half in the bottom of the fourth inning. Ashley Hewett drew a two-out walk and came around to score on a double to right-center by Coryn Schmit.
The Flames chased Schmalz in the bottom of the fifth inning. Melinda Macias drew a one-out walk and moved to second on a single through the left side by Carly Demarco, which chased Schmalz and brought Bunner into the game. Bunner quickly got a fly out to right and a pop-up to short to end the UIC scoring threat and preserve the 2-1 lead for the Tigers.
Auburn pushed the lead back to two runs on Harrison's RBI single in the sixth inning. Lauren Guzman walked to open the sixth and moved to second on a wild pitch. Guzman then stole third and came in to score on Harrison's single up the middle to give Auburn a 3-1 lead.
UIC answered in the bottom of the sixth inning with a two-out, solo home run from Schmit. It was Schmit's first home run of the season and made it a 3-2 game.
The Tigers missed a pair of scoring opportunities in the top of the seventh. Consecutive singles by Katie Colton and Caitlin Stangl put runners at second and first, respectively. Estell followed with a single up the middle, but Colton was out at home on the play. Stangl advanced to third on Estell's single and on an apparent sac fly by Kyndall White, was ruled out on an appeal for leaving third base before the catch. The double play ended the Tigers' scoring threat.
UIC mounted a scoring threat in the seventh. With two outs, Guzman dropped a pop-up that would have ended the game, and allowed Demarco to reach safely. Hernandez followed with a hard single off Bunner to put runners at second and first. Bunner then hit Jenna Marsalli on a 0-1 pitch to load the bases. Bunner ended the game, and the potential rally, by forcing Courtney Heeley into a ground out at first.