Texas Tech Athletics
Oregon
Tech Defeats 25th-Ranked Utah, 9-2
February 10, 2001 | Softball
Feb. 10, 2001
PHOENIX, Ariz. - The Texas Tech softball team defeated 25th-ranked Utah, 9-2, in Saturday's second game, using three homers to pick up its first victory in the Fiesta Bowl Classic.
The Red Raiders got home runs from Carmen Grindell, Andrea Joachims and Shauna Briggs, each player's first of the season, to back up strong pitching from Maggie Ayres and Amanda Renfro and defeat the Utes.
Tech starter Ayres worked out of a big jam in the second, allowing only one run. Melissa Stahnke singled to start the inning. Becky Culligan reached on a fielder's choice and Ayres' throw to second for the force out pulled Joachims off the bag.
Michele Larsen then walked to load the bases, and Sidney Lewis flied to deep left center field for a sacrifice fly, as all the runners moved up a base on the play. Tech centerfielder Tracy Cartier made a terrific play on the deep fly ball, robbing a possible grand slam. T.C. Jones then flied out to Eva Harshman down the left field line, and Harshman fired back into third baseman Emily Bone, doubling off Culligan at third and ending the inning.
The Red Raiders finally broke out of their scoring slump in the bottom of the third. Tracy Cartier slapped a single off the glove of Utes third baseman Lyndsey Trevis, and Harshman followed with a solid single to left. Southwest Texas State transfer Grindell then drilled a shot to right center for a three-run home run and a 3-1 Tech advantage.
Utah cut into Tech's lead in the top of the fourth, as Stahnke led off with a double down the right field line, and Culligan followed with a walk. Larsen then bunted back to Ayres, but the pitcher made her second throwing error of the game, allowing Stahnke to come around from second and score. Amanda Renfro entered the game and got the final outs of the inning, but not before Utah cut the lead to one.
But Tech got the run back in bottom half of the frame with a solo home run from freshman Joachims, upping the lead to 4-2.
Tech added to its lead in the sixth when Britney Stolle and Emily Bone had back-to-back singles to start the frame, putting runners on the corners with no one out. Pinch-hitter Staci Jackson sacrificed Bone to second, and Stolle scored on a liner to short by Cartier that was booted. Harshman followed with a chopper in the hole between short and third for an infield hit, plating Bone for a 6-2 lead.
One out later Briggs broke out of her six-game slump, belting a line drive over the left field wall for a three-run shot and a 9-2 Tech advantage.
Renfro picked up the victory in relief, throwing four innings of two-hit ball with three strikeouts. The Red Raiders had 11 hits in the contest, two each from Harshman, Bone and Joachims, as well as three RBI apiece from Grindell and Briggs.
#4 Washington 4, Texas Tech 1 The Red Raiders dropped their first game of the day, a 4-1 defeat to the fourth-ranked Washington Huskies. Tech and UW were tied 1-1 in the sixth before the Huskies scored three unearned runs to take the victory.
Each team had scoring chances in the opening innings, but neither could capitalize with runners in scoring position.
Washington's Christie Rosenblad reached on a throwing error in the second and advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt by Amy Hanson. But Tech hurler Amanda Renfro struck out Traci Tawney to end the inning.
Tech's Britney Stolle walked to start the third and went to second on a sacrifice bunt from Tracy Cartier. But the Red Raiders were unable to drive home the run, grounding out to short and popping out to end the frame.
UW's Amanda Oleson was hit by a pitch to lead off the Husky half of the third, and a one-out bunt single by Kelly Hauxhurst put two runners on. But Renfro again worked out of the jam, getting Kim DePaul and Jaime Clark to pop out to the pitcher and end the inning.
The Huskies were able to get on the board in the fourth with a solo home run from Rosenblad, giving UW a 1-0 advantage.
The Red Raiders were finally able to get on the board in the fifth. Andrea Joachims led off with a walk and advanced to second on a wild pitch. With one out Stolle walked for the second time in the game, and when the ball got away, Joachims went to third. Amanda Douglas came in to pinch-run for Joachims.
Pinch-hitter Jana Baker came to the plate and missed a two-run double by about two feet, as the ball curved just foul down the left field line. Baker grounded into a fielder's choice, and Sandy Butler walked to load the bases, the sixth walk allowed by Washington starter Shannon Walsh.
Rebecca Eimen was then hit by a pitch, forcing in a run and knotting the score at one. Washington made a pitching change at that point, bringing in Tia Bollinger, who got the final out of the inning.
The Huskies went on top in the bottom of the sixth. DePaul reached on an error to start the frame, and after Renfro got a strikeout and a fly out, Rosenblad hit her second home run of the game for a 3-1 UW advantage. Hanson followed with her own solo shot for the final margin of victory.
Rosenblad would go on to hit two more home runs in Washington's second game of the day against South Carolina.
The Red Raiders conclude action in the three-day tournament with a 9 a.m. CT contest versus Utah State.
