Baylor
Sam Houston
Baylor pounds Sam Houston State For Two Wins
8/3/2000 12:00:00 AM | Softball
Feb. 23, 2000
WACO, Texas - The Baylor softball team (8-6) exploded for its best offensive output of the season defeating Sam Houston State 10-2 and 9-0 in mercy rule games.
Game one started off interesting when Brooke Hale of Sam Houston State (4-9) attempted to take a walk on ball three with runners on first and second. Deven Mikulin went to third and Stephanie Nobriga went to second on the apparent walk before the home plate umpire called Hale back. By then, the two runners had advanced without a throw and were credited with stolen bases. Baylor pitcher Sarah Caudle then struck Hale out and got Jamie Tomasini to fly out to end the threat.
The Bears got on the board first in the bottom half of the second when Ryan Stukel led off with a walk and went to second on a sacrifice. A bunt single by Stacey Hundley put Stukel on third and she scoredon a single by Naomi Fitzgerald.
Sam Houston struck back with two runs in the top of the third when Ashlye Hylton led off with a walk and stole second. Melissa Cosgrove followed with a double to left center to score Hylton and Cosgrove scored on a two-out bloop single down the right field line by Christin Thompson.
BU caught a break in the fourth when Holly Fields' fly ball with two outs dropped in for an error when the Bearkats' left fielder and shortstop called each other off allowing Fields to reach second and two runs to score on the play. Sarah Sharp had doubled in a run earlier in the inning giving Baylor a 4-2 lead.
Baylor then opened the flood gates in the bottom of the sixth inning. With one out, the Bears put the next three batters on base chasing the starter Christin Thompson. Amy Plazter came in but could not get anybody out allowing a single, three walks, two with the bases loaded, and threw a wild pitch allowing the tenth run to score ending the game.
Fitzgerald went 4-for-4 in the game setting a career high in hits. Senior Carrie Arn (2-1) got the win pitching three innings of relief giving up no runs on only one hit with seven strikeouts. Arn struck out the first four batters she faced and the first six outs were all K's.
Game two was all Baylor's from the beginning as the team scored six runs on four hits with the help of two errors en route to a 9-0, five-inning game.
Fitzgerald singled to lead off the game and went to second on a bunt single by Sharp. Sarah Caudle followed with an RBI single and Kristen Lancaster reached on a fielding error by the Sam Houston third baseman loading the bases. Stukel then singled to left scoring Sharp and the ensuing error by the left fielder on the play cleared the bases. Vanessa VandeBurgt grounded out to score Stukel and give BU a 6-0 lead.
Baylor got two more runs in the third when Lancaster reached on a two-base throwing error by the Bearkats' shortstop and came home when Kelly Fleming drilled a double to left centerfield. Fleming came around to score after Stukel singled and being the front end of a double steal attempt.
The final run was put up in the fourth when pinch hitter Jennifer Polk drove home pinch hitter Summer Rohde with a sacrifice fly.
Freshman Joni Miller (4-3) picked up the win going the distance giving up just three hits with one walk and five strikeouts.
