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May 10, 2002
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – The Virginia softball team lost to North Carolina 6-0 in the first game of the Atlantic Coast Conference Championship Friday (May 10) at the Seminole Softball Complex. With the loss, the Cavaliers fall to 44-21 on the season and drop to the lower half of the bracket in the double elimination tournament. UVa returns to action in the ACC Tournament at 11:00 a.m. Saturday and plays either Maryland or Georgia Tech.
North Carolina scored four runs in the bottom of the first inning with two of the four runs being unearned. Quinn Porter drove in the first two runs with a single to left center. Porter scored on Jessica Young’s double down the left field line and then Shannon Walsh delivered the Tar Heels’ fourth run with a sacrifice fly to right field. In the third inning, Walsh increased North Carolina’s lead to 5-0 with a double to right field that scored Sarah Young. Young was pinch running for Jessica Young who reached on catcher’s interference with two outs. Porter drove in her third run of the game in the sixth inning with a single up the middle that scored Rosie Gustavson.
The Cavaliers had several chances to score as they left nine runners on base in the game, including the bases loaded in the fourth and fifth innings. UVa also stranded a pair of runners in the second inning.
Fourth-year All-American Kristen Dennis (Encinitas, Calif./La Costa Canyon) took the loss in the circle for the Cavaliers and fell to 23-11 on the season. She gave up five runs, only two of which were earned, on nine hits in 4.1 innings of work. Dennis struck out seven batters and walked one. Fourth-year Erin Allinder (Norco, Calif./Norco) pitched the final 1.2 innings and gave up one run on three hits. She also struck out a pair of batters.
North Carolina’s Shannon Walsh picked up the shutout victory to improve to 13-14. She limited UVa to four hits and struck out seven while walking five.
Second-year shortstop Heather Field (Lincoln, Calif./Lincoln), fifth-year center fielder Kelly McCabe (Maple Glen, Pa./Upper Dublin), third-year third baseman Ruby Rojas (Santa Ana, Calif./Mater Dei) and first-year right fielder Valerie Sevilla (Rancho Cucamonga, Calif./Rancho Cucamonga) each had a hit for the Cavaliers. Dennis walked three times in the contest to increase her UVa single season record total to 51.
Porter had three hits and three RBI for North Carolina (32-28). Walsh helped her own cause with an RBI double and a sacrifice fly.