Ball State University
BYU
Softball?s Reifschneider Notches 6th And 7th Home Runs
March 14, 2009 | Softball
CLEARWATER, Fla. ? The Ball State softball team lost a heartbreaker to Brigham Young Saturday after the Cougars notched a three-run homer at the end of ten innings. The Cardinals beat Indiana 4-1 later in the day with two home runs by Jen Reifschneider.
GAME ONE
A sacrifice bunt by Brigham Young (14-11) put runners on second and third in the bottom of the first. But pitcher Laura Masch struck out a batter and forced the Cougars to ground out to Alicia Barkley to end the inning.
Alyssa Collins singled down the left field line, stole second and reached third on a wild pitch, but could not score in the top of the second.
Both defenses remained strong throughout three innings. Natalie Bejarano threw out a runner stealing second and almost caught another Cougar runner.
Brigham Young would cave first in the fourth. Barkley walked and Collins notched the Cardinals second hit into left center, moving Barkley to third. Collins then stole second which sent Barkley to home on the throw and Collins advanced to third. Following that, Reifschneider made a sacrifice fly to bring Collins home for a two-run cushion.
The Cougars fought back with two runs of their own in the sixth off four singles. The Cardinals tried to rally with Reifschneider's single, but Brigham Young made a double play in the top of the seventh followed by a strikeout to close the side. The game was ultimately sent into extra innings.
Jackie Durment was placed on second for international scoring in the eighth. She advanced to third on a sacrifice bunt by Kamilah Holle. Jen Moore stepped in to pinch hit. She singled, but Durment was caught in a pickle and out at third base. Moore was also caught stealing third.
After a scoreless ninth inning, Ball State placed Barkley on second to begin the tenth. Collins singled to center field for her third hit of the game and advanced to second on the throw. Reifschneider hit a ground-rule double to advance Collins home. The Cardinals earned two runs and two hits for a score of 5-3.
With a runner on second and a runner on first after a walk, Angeline Quiocho hit a walkoff three-run home run in the bottom of the tenth to give Brigham Young the 5-4 win.
Masch (2-1) took the loss for her nine and a third innings of work with seven strikeouts and just two walks.
Ball State had seven hits, while the Cougars connected on nine.
GAME TWO
The Cardinals faced interstate foe Indiana (2-17) an hour later. Each team found only one hit each throughout four innings.
In the top of the fifth inning, Reifschneider hit home run No. 6 this season on a long shot down the right field line. Her two-run homer pushed Collins in as well for her sixteenth RBI.
Moore also recorded her first of two hits in the game. Holle then notched a single to send Moore home for her first RBI of the season; however, Holle was tagged out trying to advance to second on the throw.
With a score of 3-0, Kate Wilczynski made a quick reaction to a speeding grounder at third for the first out in the bottom of the fifth. A ground out and fly out followed.
Reifschneider sent her second hit of the game over the left field wall for a solo home run in the seventh inning to put the game out of reach for the Hoosiers. She is now tied for third all time with seven home runs in a single-season. Former players Abby Gross and Taylor Yancey own the record with eight.
Ball State allowed Indiana just one hit in the previous six innings until the Hoosiers found three more and scored one run in the seventh. But the lone run was not enough to get Indiana back in the game as Milian struck out a Hoosier batter to win the game.
Milian (6-7) got the win in her tenth complete game, with nine strikeouts for a total of 71 strikeouts this season.
Ball State (8-11) faces East Tennessee State 10 a.m. Sunday for its last game in South Florida's Under Armour Showcase. The Cardinals are currently 6-6 in Florida.
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