April 2, 2006
Box Score
CARBONDALE, Ill. -
One bad inning led to the Illinois State softball team's demise in the series finale against No. 25 Southern Illinois as the `Birds fell 9-1. The Salukis scored eight runs in the third and out-hit ISU 9-4 as the `Birds dropped to 19-10 overall and 8-3 in the Missouri valley Conference.
Southern Illinois (23-5, 7-2) jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the second inning after Katie Louis sent an 0-2 pitch over the fence in centerfield to start the inning.
Illinois State's pitchers were roughed up in the third inning as the `Birds went through three pitchers and Southern Illinois batted all the way around. After a single and a double to leadoff the inning, Redbird starter Stacy Birk struck out her first batter of the game for the first out. With runners on second second and third, Lauren Haas hit a high chopper towards third base. Tricia Gaither was able to corral it, but both her tag of the runner at third and the throw to first were late as the Salukis loaded the bases. Louis then did some more damage with a bases loaded two-run single to shallow right field.
Birk was then pulled in favor of Shannon Nicholson, but she walked the first batter she faced to load the bases again. It appeared that the `Birds might have a chance at a double play when Lauren Roney's hit a slow roller right back to the circle; however, Nicholson's throw sailed well over catcher Casey Gorrell's head on the force attempt as the SIU took a four-run lead. Then the back-break was when designated player Jayme Wamsley hit a grand slam to double the Salukis' run total for an 8-0 advantage.
Amber Smith then came on in relief of Nicholson. After surrendering a home run and a single to the first two batters she faced, Smith settled down and helped the `Birds get out of the inning, but ISU trailed 9-0 after Southern Illinois scored eight runs on six hits and a Redbird error.
The `Birds put a run on the board in the top of the fourth as Jessie Buker sent a two-out double to right center for her first hit of the series. Gorrell followed with a RBI single up the middle as Buker came around to score to break up the shutout, but that was as close at the `Birds got as the game ended following the top of the fifth courtesy of the run rule.
Cassidy Scoggins (15-4) earned the win for the Salukis, while Birk took the loss for Illinois State. Scoggins worked the complete game, striking out four. Illinois State's three pitchers allowed eight hits and nine runs, eight of them earned. The staff struck out just four SIU batters and walked one.
Gorrell was two-for-two with the lone RBI for the `Birds. Louis was the only Saluki with two hits and contributed three RBI.
