Ball State University Athletics
Softball Rally Grounds Rockets
April 16, 2006 | Softball
It took five innings, but Ball State's bats came alive just in time to rally back for a 3-2 Mid-American Conference win over Toledo Sunday at the BSU Softball Complex. The Cardinals trailed 2-0 before scoring two runs in the sixth and then the game-winning run off of Kelli Jeziorski's single in the bottom of the seventh. For the second day in a row, BSU's defense and pitching staff held Toledo -- one of the MAC's leading offensive teams -- in check. Amanda Pick tied her career high with eight strikeouts to earn the decision.
Toledo's Brie Ford managed one of her team's two hits on the day when she tripled to right center field with one out in the first. She scored three batters later when she stole home. Pick retired the next six Rocket batters, four of them on strikeouts, before Gina Muratori led off the fourth with a single, advanced to third on a sacrifice bunt and then scored on Alison Hess' sacrifice fly to left. UT, which would have just one base runner -- on a walk -- for the remainder of the game, led 2-0 after three and one-half innings.
Ball State got its first runner into scoring position in the bottom of the fourth, when Cortney Patteson opened the inning with a walk, advanced to second on Pick's sacrifice bunt and to third on a infield ground out by Abby Gross. UT's Sierra Pereira got out of the inning by retiring the next two Cardinal batters. BSU came up empty again in the fifth, despite putting another runner into scoring position after Katie Pilger led off with a double to the left field warning track.
Ball State's sixth-inning rally began with the top of the order when Jeziorski led off with a single up the middle and then moved to second on Patteson's ground out to the pitcher. Pick followed with a single to center moving Jeziorski to third. Gross followed with a sacrifice fly to left field, plating Jeziorski for BSU's first run. After Taylor Yancey walked to put runners on first and second, Pilger followed with a bloop between the center fielder and shortstop, scoring Pick for the game-tieing run. Toledo got out of the inning on a ground out to short.
Shannon Sharpe, pinch hitting for Sarah McGregor, led off the dramatic seventh with a walk. Kamilah Holle followed with a perfectly executed sacrifice bunt, moving McGregor -- who returned to the lineup to run for Sharpe -- to second. Jeziorski followed with a single to left center. McGregor moved to third and then eventually home for the game winner after the ball was fielded and then bobbled by UT's Erica Singer on the play.
"I thought the key today was our execution and our never-say-die attitude," BSU head coach Terri Laux said. "The execution was perfect in the seventh from Shannon's walk, to Kamilah's sacrifice bunt to Kelli's hit. Amanda Pick had a phenomenal game on the mound. She controlled the game from the get go. This was an important game for us and we are all relieved to get the win."
Ball State posted a 6-2 lead in hits with Jeziorski and Pilger getting two each. Pick, who retired 12 of the final 13 Toledo batters she faced, improved to 5-6 on the season.
The Cardinals, 11-19 overall and 5-7 in the MAC, break from conference play Monday when they host Dayton in a twinbill beginning at 2 p.m.
