Northwestern State Edges Liberty, 4-3, in 9 Innings
2/20/2016 12:00:00 AM | Softball
Liberty and Northwestern State staged a tightly-contested game, with the Lady Demons scoring an unanswered run in the ninth inning to edge the Lady Flames, 4-3, Saturday at Baylor's Getterman Stadium.
Northwestern State improves to 7-3 on the season, and 1-2 at this weekend's Getterman Classic. Liberty's season record stands at 3-6, including 1-2 this weekend as the tournament enters bracket play.
Both teams had numerous scoring chances, with the Lady Demons leaving 16 on base and Liberty stranding 11 baserunners.
NSU's Micaela Bouvier (4-1) went the distance, allowing three runs (two earned) on nine hits, walking two and striking out four. Bouvier supported her own cause, batting 2-for-3 with a double and one RBI.
Julia DiMartino (1-3) drew the loss, yielding one unearned run on two hits in one inning pitched. Chandler Ball tossed five and two-thirds innings of two-hit relief, giving up one run on two hits while fanning three and walking eight. Starter Chase Cassady pitched a total of two and one-thirds innings, allowing two runs on four hits, with five strikeouts and one walk.
Micaela Sorosiak went 2-for-3 with a double and one RBI for NSU, while Kellye Kincannon batted 2-for-4 with a homer.
Liberty's Sarah Robertson went 2-for-4 with her first career homer, while Deidra See batted 2-for-3 with one RBI. Tori Zavodny homered and scored two runs.
Kincannon staked the Lady Demons to an early 1-0 lead with a solo homer in the top of the first inning.
Northwestern State added to its lead during its second time up. With runners on second and third and two outs, Sidney Salmans hit an RBI single to make it 2-0. Ball then entered the circle with the bases loaded and got Jordan Rains to line out to end the scoring threat.
A leadoff homer by Robertson trimmed the Lady Flames' deficit in half in the bottom of the second. Bouvier worked around a two-out single, striking out Kaitlin McFarland.
After NSU left two on base in the top of the third, Liberty knotted things up on a Zavodny solo homer to right during their third time to bat.
Liberty had the bases loaded with one out in the fourth, before Bouvier struck out McFarland and got Cassie Gingerich to ground out to end the inning.
Both Ball and Bouvier kept the opposing team off the board through the end of the seventh inning. The Lady Flames left the winning run on second when Zavodny popped up to end the seventh inning.
With the international tie-breaker in effect to start the eighth, Liberty erased the lead runner at third. After a fielding error, Hailee Rhodes singled to load the bases. Ball walked Rains to push the go-ahead run across. DiMartino came on in relief of Ball, getting the last two batter out.
Liberty drove in baserunner Zavodny, on a two-out single by See that tied the score at 3-3 in the bottom of the eighth. Rylee Reynolds then singled, before Kassidy McCoy struck out to end the threat.
Bouvier hit a one-out RBI double to give NSU a 4-3 lead in the ninth. After a Sorosiak single, Cassady returned to the circle, fanning out the final two Demon batters.
Liberty moved its International tie-breaker runner to third with a sacrifice to start the bottom of the ninth. Gingerich reached on a bunt single. After a walk to Amader, NSU erased Jessica Cicerchia at the plate on a fielder's choice. Alexia Taylor then lined out, and the Demons held on to win, 4-3.
The Lady Flames have completed pool play at the Getterman Classic. Following the conclusion of the Baylor/North Texas game, Liberty will either play at 4 p.m. or 6:30 p.m., in a semifinal contest.
