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Feb. 28, 2004
HOUSTON, Texas – The University of Virginia softball team split a pair of games Saturday (February 28) at the Hyatt Regency Cougar Classic at Cougar Field. The Cavaliers opened the day with a 5-3 victory over Pittsburgh, but fell to host Houston 4-1 in the second game. UVa is now 2-1 in the tournament and stands at 9-3 on the season.
In UVa’s 5-3 win over Pittsburgh, fourth-year first baseman Hannah Owings (Issaquah, Wash./Liberty) led off the bottom of the sixth inning with a solo home to knot the game at 2-2. It was Owings’ team-leading fourth home run of the season. Fourth-year shortstop Heather Field (Lincoln, Calif./Lincoln) accounted for the final three runs of the inning with a two-out three-run homer to push the Cavalier advantage to 5-2. Field also scored Virginia’s first run of the game in the third inning on a wild pitch.
Fourth-year pitcher Joanna Barstad (Canby, Ore./Canby) went the distance in the circle to improve to 3-0 on the year. She gave up three runs, only one of which was earned, on eight hits. She struck out three batters while issuing two walks.
The Cavaliers dropped a 4-1 decision to host Houston (14-6) to fall to 2-1 in the three-day tournament. Virginia scored its only run of the game in the top of the first inning when second-year center fielder Jessica Taylor (Philadelphia, Pa./Germantown Academy) singled and scored from second base on an error by Houston’s shortstop. The Cougars tied the game in the bottom of the first with an unearned run and scored twice in the fourth and added a single tally in the fifth to make the final score 4-1.
First-year Coty Tolar (Marietta, Ga./Lassiter) suffered her first collegiate loss on the mound. She gave up four runs, only one of which was earned, on nine hits. She struck out one batter and walked two while falling to 2-1.
Houston’s Jamie Falco limited UVa to four hits and one unearned run in improving to 4-0 on the season. She struck out three Cavaliers and walked two.
Field had two of UVa’s four hits in the game, while Taylor and Owings accounted for the Cavaliers’ other two base hits.
Virginia concludes play in the Cougar Classic with games against Mississippi State and Villanova on Sunday (February 28).