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Virginia Softball Notches Second Win Over A Ranked Opponent
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March 10, 2004
STOCKTON, Calif. – For the second consecutive day, the University of Virginia softball team defeated a ranked opponent as the Cavaliers registered an 8-2 win over 17th-ranked Pacific in the second game of a doubleheader Wednesday afternoon (March 10) at Bill Simoni Field. UVa lost the first game to the Tigers 8-0 in five innings. On Tuesday evening (March 9), the Cavaliers registered a 9-3 win over 15th-ranked Fresno State in the second game of a twinbill for their first victory over a ranked opponent since the end of the 1999 season. Virginia now stands at 12-10 on the season, while Pacific falls to 17-4.
In the first game of the doubleheader, Pacific’s Jennifer Dacre tossed a two-hit shutout in the Tigers 8-0 five-inning victory. Pacific broke the game open early with five runs in the bottom of the second and added two more in the third and a single tally in the fourth to make the score 8-0. The eight-run rule was invoked after the Cavaliers failed to score in the top of the fifth.
First-year third baseman Amy McKean (Kent, Wash./Kentlake) had a double in the third inning for UVa’s first hit and third-year catcher Jenn Wynn (Herndon, Va./Herndon) added a single in the fourth to account for Virginia’s only other hit in the game.
Fourth-year Joanna Barstad (Canby, Ore./Canby) took the loss in the circle and falls to 4-4 on the season. Barstad pitched 1.2 innings and allowed five runs on five hits while striking out one and walking one. First-year Coty Tolar (Marietta, Ga./Lassiter) pitched the final 2.1 innings and gave up three runs (two earned) on six hits. She struck out two batters and walked three.
After having their bats silenced in the first game, the Cavaliers exploded for eight runs on 12 hits in registering an 8-2 win in the nightcap. Virginia also received a strong pitching performance from second-year Erin Horn (Tallahassee, Fla./Leon) as she notched her second consecutive win over a ranked foe. Horn improved to 6-3 on the season with a complete-game effort against the Tigers. She allowed two runs on seven hits with five strikeouts and three walks.
The Cavaliers broke open a scoreless contest with five runs in the top of the fifth inning. Fourth-year shortstop Heather Field (Lincoln, Calif./Lincoln) drove in the first two runs in the inning with a double to left center. After a single by second-year center fielder Jessica Taylor (Philadelphia, Pa./Germantown Academy), Pacific made a pitching change. Second-year second baseman Sara Larquier (Burbank, Calif./John Burroughs) promptly greeted Kristen Allen with a three-run homer to right field. In the sixth inning, Taylor hit a double down the left field line that scored second-year right fielder Jackie Greer (Portage, Mich./Portage Northern). Larquier then doubled to left center to score Taylor and make the score 7-0.
Pacific answered with two runs in the bottom of the sixth, but UVa closed out the scoring with a run in the seventh to make the final score 8-2. First-year designated player Brooke Sorber (Alexandria, Va./Mount Vernon) drove in fourth-year first baseman Hannah Owings (Issaquah, Wash./Liberty) with a suicide squeeze to account for UVa’s eighth run. Owings led off the seventh with a double to left.
Virginia returns to action on Friday (March 12) when it begins play in the National Invitational Softball Tournament in Sunnyvale, Calif. UVa opens the tournament with games against Purdue and third-ranked California at 6:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m. ET, respectively.