April 26, 2007

SOFTBALL: Lutes Play Puget Sound in Final Games

THIS WEEK: Pacific Lutheran host Puget Sound in a doubleheader starting at noon on Saturday; PLU travels to Puget Sound to take on the Loggers in a Sunday doubleheader starting at noon.

LUTES TAKE FOUR FROM OREGON FOES: The Lutes went on the road last week to take on Northwest Conference foes George Fox and Lewis & Clark. The Lutes were able to take all four games in the doubleheaders to improve their overall record to 16-15, while moving up to 10-14 in conference play.

GEORGE FOX GAME NOTES: In the first game, George Fox took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the second when Ashley Olson doubled off the fence in left, was sacrificed to third, and scored on an error. Pacific Lutheran tied it with an unearned run in the 4th as Carly Starke singled and went all the way to third when the ball was mishandled in left, then scored on Theresa Tauscher’s single to right-center. After the Bruins stranded the go-ahead runs on second and third in the sixth inning, the Lutes broke through in the seventh for the winning runs. Pinch-hitter Ashley Lopez and Karen Henjum drew leadoff walks from Bruin pitcher Kayla Winkler (4-16), and Vanessa Bryant moved them along with a sacrifice. Winkler bounced the throw to first, however, allowing Lopez to score, Henjum to reach third, and Bryant to reach first. Heather Walling lined an apparent hit to left, only to lose it when Bryant was forced at second, but Henjum scored from third for an unearned insurance run. Hadley Schmitt (8-9) went the distance for the Lutes, scattering four hits while striking out four and walking two. Winkler took the tough-luck loss for the Bruins, allowing only five hits with six strikeouts and four walks. PLU got on the board first in the second game with a pair of runs in the top of the third inning. Missy Waldron singled up the middle to lead off, advanced on a ground out and a wild pitch, and scored on Starke’s single up the middle. Cassie Canales singled Starke to third, and a wild pitch let in the second run. The Bruins tied it in the home half. Winkler led off with a single and moved to third on a sacrifice and a single to left by Torey Weatherman. Winkler scored when Weatherman stole second and the catcher’s throw bounced into center field. After a pair of walks loaded the bases, Haley Harnish-Stadden hit a grounder to short, and the throw home was dropped, allowing Weatherman to score an unearned run. The Lutes took the lead for good with three runs in the fourth, Tauscher singling in the go-ahead run and later scoring on one of 10 wild pitches by Bruin hurlers. The last run scored on a ground out to second by Waldron. A six-run fifth, featuring a two-run single by Bryant and a two-run double by Beth Kenck, gave the Lutes an insurmountable 11-2 lead. Olson doubled and Harnish-Stadden hit her first home run of the season to right field with two out in the bottom of the fifth to keep the game going for the Bruins for another inning. The Lutes added two more in the sixth on another RBI single by Tauscher and a run-scoring double by Lisa Gilbert, then held the Bruins scoreless to end the game by the college eight-run rule. Ashley Lopez (1-0), who came on in relief of starter Canales with one out in the third, got the win, working 3 2/3 innings while allowing two hits and two runs with a pair of strikeouts and one walk. Weatherman (1-8) took the loss, allowing 10 hits and nine runs, six earned, in 4 1/3 innings. She fanned two and walked one.

LEWIS & CLARK GAME NOTES: In game one, the Lutes jumped out to an early lead, translating three first inning hits into a 3-0 lead. Heather Walling led off with a single, stole second and scored on Beth Kenck's RBI double. Kenck eventually came around on Karen Henjum's single. After the Pioneers plated an unearned run in the bottom of the inning to make it 3-1, both starting pitchers - the Lutes' Hadley Schmitt and the Pioneers' Janet Freerks - found their groove until the seventh inning. With two outs in the seventh, Carly Starke doubled and came around to score on an RBI single by Henjum, her third hit of the game. Lewis & Clark got a run back on a homer by Jessica Mullins, and the Pioneers had two aboard with one out before Schmitt worked out of the jam to secure the victory. Schmitt allowed just one earned run on four hits while walking three and striking out 10 in the complete-game victory. In game two, PLU starting pitcher Cassie Canales helped out her own cause before throwing a single pitch, staking her team to a 2-0 first inning lead with a two-out, two-run double. Canales also played a key role in PLU's two other rallies. She led off the fourth with her second double and accounted for one of the Lutes' four runs. Theresa Tauscher and Henjum had run-producing singles during the inning. In the fifth, Canales led off with a single and scored on a two-run home run by Alana Schutt. Canales allowed just two hits while walking one and fanning four in the second game.

THREE LUTES SAY GOODBYE: For the three seniors on this year’s softball team the two doubleheaders against Puget Sound will be the last games of their college career. Beth Kenck, Ashley Lopez, and Alana Schutt will hang up their gloves after this weekend. Kenck has been a key figure in the softball program for the last few seasons. She has been a four-year starter for the Lutes and hit .237 with two homers and 16 RBI while starting 36 PLU games as a junior. Her sophomore year, Kenck hit .294 in 31 starts, and her best statistical year was in 2004 when she hit .329 in 26 starts and was voted most improved player. Lopez is also rounding up her fourth season as a Lute. She compiled a 5-6 record with 3.79 earned run average in 61 innings last year. Lopez also had a homer and 13 RBI in 63 at-bats. Schutt transferred to PLU last season and has had a positive impact on the team. Schutt has 17 hits in 60 at bats along with 16 runs batted in, making her third on the team in total RBIs.

- PLU -