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Virginia Softball Splits Two Games In Cougar Classic
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Feb. 28, 2003
CHARLESTON, S.C. – The University of Virginia softball team split its first two games of the Hampton Inn/Cougar Classic Friday (February 28) as the Cavaliers defeated St. Bonaventure 7-3 and lost to Michigan State 3-2 in 10 innings at the Jones Center. UVa now stands at 5-5 on the season and continues action in the tournament with a pair of games Saturday. The Cavaliers will play St. Francis (Pa.) at 8:00 a.m. and Campbell at noon. Single elimination play is slated to begin at 3:00 p.m. Saturday and continues Sunday.
In the 7-3 win over St. Bonaventure, third-year pitcher Joanna Barstad (Canby, Ore./Canby) retired the first 10 batters she faced and allowed only three runs on four hits in picking up the victory. Barstad struck out 10 batters in improving to 2-1 on the season. First-year second baseman Sara Larquier (Burbank, Calif./John Burroughs) was three for three, including her third home run of the season, and also scored three runs.
UVa took a 2-0 lead in the top of the first inning when first-year left fielder Jessica Taylor (Philadelphia, Pa./Germantown Academy) walked and fourth-year third baseman Ruby Rojas (Santa Ana, Calif./Mater Dei) moved her to third with a single. Both players scored on wild pitches. Larquier made the score 3-0 when she led off the second inning with a single and scored on another wild pitch. In the fourth inning, Barstad helped her own cause by driving in Larquier, who had doubled, with a sacrifice fly. Virginia increased its lead to 5-0 in the fifth when third-year shortstop Heather Field (Lincoln, Calif./Lincoln) scored on third-year third baseman Tracy Sherman’s (San Clemente, Calif./St. Margaret’s Episcopal) groundout. Larquier led off the fifth inning with a home run and second-year right fielder M.K. White (Vienna, Va./James Madison) tallied UVa’s final run to make the score 7-0.
St. Bonaventure used four hits to score three runs in the bottom of the seventh inning to make the final score 7-3.
The Cavaliers fell to Michigan State 3-2 in 10 innings in their second contest of the tournament. The Spartans’ Lacy Hauxhurst drove in Brittney Green with a single to center field with one out in the bottom of the 10th inning to lift Michigan State to the victory.
UVa took a 1-0 lead in the top of the second on White’s sacrifice fly to left field that scored third-year first baseman Hannah Owings (Issaquah, Wash./Liberty). Owings led off the inning with single to left and moved to third on second-year designated player Jenn Wynn’s (Herndon, Va./Herndon) base hit to right field. Michigan State took a 2-1 lead with a pair of unearned runs in the bottom of the fifth inning.
The Cavaliers came back to tie the game at 2-2 with two outs in the seventh. White started the rally with a two-out double to left field and then scored on Sherman’s pinch hit single to left center.
First-year pitcher Erin Horn (Tallahassee, Fla./Leon) was the tough-luck loser as she allowed three runs, none of which were earned, on six hits, in falling to 3-3 on the season. She struck out 10 batters in the complete game effort.