April 26, 2006
The University of Notre Dame softball team (32-14) split just its second of 11 doubleheaders this season, winning game one 9-1 in six innings but dropping game two 7-4 to Purdue (28-28). The Irish have swept nine of their 11 doubleheaders played so far this season, but Wednesday’s split with the Boilermakers truly was a tale of two different games.
Notre Dame jumped all over Purdue in game one, posting five runs in the bottom of the first inning – with the big hits coming from senior Meagan Ruthrauff (two-RBI single, one of four hits in the game for Ruthrauff) and junior Carissa Jaquish (two-run home run). The Irish never looked back behind a solid pitching performance from senior Heather Booth (5 2/3 innings, three hits, two walks, seven strikeouts) and eventually claimed a shortened victory 9-1.
Purdue followed Notre Dame’s script in the second game. Taking advantage of a walk and hit by pitch in the first inning, the Boilermakers scored two runs in their first at bat and the Irish were playing catch up for the rest of the game. Purdue pulled Diana LaRiva, its game-two starter, just 1 1/3 innings into the game. Melissa Burns took over and kept the Irish at bay, scattering five hits and allowing three runs (just one earned).
The Irish did cut the lead to 4-2 on an RBI double by Mallorie Lenn in the bottom of the fifth inning, but Purdue answered with three runs in the top of the sixth to put the game out of reach. Notre Dame scratched across two runs in the bottom of the seventh on a sacrifice fly and hit by pitch, but Jaquish grounded out to shortstop to end the contest and leave the bases loaded.
Notre Dame will return to action tomorrow, Thursday, April 27, with a single make up game at Valparaiso (3:30 p.m.). The Irish will then hit the road this weekend for a key pair of BIG EAST doubleheaders at South Florida (Saturday) and at Louisville (Sunday).
GAME ONE RECAP:
Junior Stephanie Brown, back in the lineup after missing the Rutgers doubleheader on Sunday with an illness, started off the bottom of the first inning with an infield single. Senior Sara Schoonaert followed by reaching on a fielder’s choice and Lenn immediately moved both runners into scoring position with a sacrifice bunt. Ruthrauff then drilled a two-RBI single through the middle of the drawn in infield and the Irish quickly were staged to a 2-0 lead.
Sophomore Sarah Smith entered to run for Ruthrauff and she would eventually score on an RBI doubled into the left-centerfield gap by sophomore Katie Laing. Laing ended up on third after a throwing error by the Purdue shortstop, but she did not spend much time on the third base bag. Jaquish stepped in and smoked her second home run of the season over the rightfield fence to put the Irish ahead 5-0.
Booth switched to cruise control over the next four innings, allowing just a single base runner each at bat (with only one reaching on a base hit). Notre Dame tacked on three more runs in the bottom of the third inning. Lenn led off with a no-doubt home run to leftfield – her sixth round tripper of the season. Ruthrauff followed up with her second hit of the game, a double down the rightfield line. Her aggressive base running at second forced Purdue into another throwing error and she ended up at third base and in scoring position for Laing.
The Irish second base could not come through in the RBI opportunity, but freshman Linda Kohan stepped up to rocket a single into centerfield for the second run of the inning. Jaquish then drew a walk, freshman Erin Glasco was hit by a pitch to load the bases and junior Gessica Hufnagle was issued a walk to force in the third run of the third inning for Notre Dame. The bases loaded walk chased Purdue starter Brooke Baker from the game, but Burns, who would earn the victory in game two, shut the door on the Irish by getting back-to-back foul outs by Brown and Schoonaert.
With the Irish comfortably ahead 8-0, head coach Deanna Gumpf looked to get junior Kenya Fuemmeler an inning of work before the game was called on the eight-run rule. Fuemmeler did not have her best stuff, however, and she loaded the bases with three walks. Booth was called back into the inning with one out, but she uncorked a wild pitch to give the Boilermakers a free run without a single hit in the top of the fifth inning. Booth recovered to post two strikeouts to end the inning, but the Irish were now faced with scoring one more run to end the game early.
The Irish could do nothing in the bottom of the fifth, but they came through with a run in the bottom of the sixth on a big two-out hit by Kohan. With one out, Ruthrauff doubled to rightfield (her fourth hit of the game) and scored when Kohan bounced a solid single up the middle to end game one.
GAME TWO RECAP:
Purdue followed Notre Dame’s script from game one by scoring two runs of its own in the top of the first inning. Bargar issued a walk to Staci Falzon, the Boiler leadoff batter and she was moved to second on a sacrifice bunt. Falzon then stole third base and Tricia Lilley was hit by a pitch to put runners on the corners. Lilley quickly stole second base to get in scoring position and ran home on a bases clearing double from DaQueta Johnson.
Purdue had suddenly scored two runs on just one hit in the top of the first inning.
Notre Dame could not answer until the second inning, when the bottom of its lineup came through with a run. With one out, Jaquish doubled to rightfield. Glasco then singled through the right side and was replaced by pinch runner Brittany Glynn while Jaquish moved to third on the play. Smith, who started game two in leftfield, came through with a high bouncing infield hit up the middle of the Purdue defense that drove in Jaquish and provided the junior from Oklahoma City, Okla., her first career RBI.
The score remained 2-1 until Purdue drove ahead 4-1 in the top of the fifth inning. With one out, Kelly Miller drew a walk and advanced to second on a ground ball out. Tiffany Krcelich then bounced a slap infield hit to second base with two outs and Miller never paused coming around third base and scored when the Irish defense was slow to react after a close call at first base. Lilley followed up by drilling a double into left-centerfield that allowed the speedy Krcelich to score all the way from first base.
Notre Dame stayed close with a single run in the bottom of the fifth when Schoonaert singled and Lenn doubled into left-centerfield and moved to third on a throwing error by the Purdue defense. A key run, however, was left at third when Ruthrauff grounded out sharply to end the inning.
What little momentum the Irish had grabbed in the bottom of the fifth was quickly forgotten when Purdue posted another three runs in the top of the sixth inning. Becky Stone led off with a hit and moved to second base when her hard hit ball was misplayed by Jaquish in rightfield. An apparent sacrifice bunt from Catherine Zaworski turned into a bunt single when she killed the ball in a perfect spot in from of the plate. Stone advanced to third on the play and left a base open for Zaworski, to took advantage of the first and third situation to steal second base.
The steal would mean little, however, because the Purdue catcher Erika Peterson followed up with a three run homer that just found its way over the rightfield fence. Suddenly, the Irish were in an insurmountable five-run hole.
After a quick sixth inning from the Irish, they would stage a mini-rally in the bottom of the seventh. Smith started the inning with a solid single to centerfield. Brown then came through with a great at bat to reach on an infield hit and put runners at first and second. Schoonaert struck out to deaden a bit of the momentum, but PU’s Lilley misplayed a routine ground ball by Lenn to shortstop and suddenly the tying run was walking to the plate with Ruthrauff.
With 10 home runs this season, the Irish senior third base was thinking one swing to tie the game, but she flied out routinely to centerfield for a sacrifice fly RBI. Notre Dame kept the pressure on when a walk to Kohan loaded the bases and Laing was struck by a pitch to force in yet another run. The lead was cut to three with the winning run now in the batter’s box with Jaquish. Purdue finally ended the inning and claimed the doubleheader split when Jaquish grounded out routinely to shortstop.
DOUBLEHEADER NOTES: Meagan Ruthrauff tied her career high for hits in a game during the first contest, going four for four with two runs scored, two RBI and two doubles … Stephanie Brown finished the doubleheader three for eight with two runs scored and is fully recovered from her illness that kept her out of Sunday’s doubleheader with Rutgers … Linda Kohan finished game one three for four with two RBI and was walked twice in game two … Sarah Smith logged the first two-hit game of her career in game two, scoring a run and picking up her first RBI … Mallorie Lenn continued her consistent production in the No. 3 spot in Notre Dame’s order, going three for six with two RBI in the doubleheader … Brittney Bargar suffered perhaps her worse loss of the season in game two, allowing eight hits, seven runs (all earned) and walking two while striking out eight.