Michigan State University
Nc Greensboro
Softball Defeats Elon, Falls To UNC-Greensboro
2/24/2002 12:00:00 AM | Softball
Feb. 24, 2002
BURLINGTON, N.C. - The Michigan State softball team split its final two games in the Elon Tournament Sunday morning (Feb. 24). MSU defeated Elon, 2-1, in game one and fell to UNC-Greensboro by the same score in game two. The Spartans went 2-2 in the tournament and are 2-6 overall for the season.
Michigan State, trailing 1-0 after the first inning, came back to score runs in the fifth and sixth in the 2-1 win over Elon (0-10). MSU scored the game-winning run with two outs in the bottom of the sixth. With runners on second and third, Keri DeJong (Sr., Portage/Kalamazoo Christian) hit a ground ball to Elon shortstop Jenny Gustin, who bobbled the ball and allowed Amanda Melton (Sr., Saugus, Calif./Saugus) to score from third. In the fifth, the Spartans manufactured a run to get on the board. Margaret Schick (Jr., Grass Lake/Chelsea) singled to left to start the inning, advanced to second on a Natalie Furrow (So., San Diego, Calif./Mills E. Godwin) single and got to third on a Sandy Lewis (Jr., Empire, Mich/Glen Lake) sacrifice. Tiffany Wallace (Jr., Wildomar, Calif./Pacifica) then knocked in Schick on a sacrifice fly to center field.
The two runs was all Jessica Beech (So., Okemos/Okemos) needed to get her first win of the season (1-2). Beech came in relief in the top of the third for DeJong and shut down the Phoenix, striking out eight and allowing only one run in five innings of work. Beech has struck out 19 batters in her last 12 innings on the mound.
Michigan State had eight hits in the contest but also left eight runners on base, while Elon stranded 10 runners.
UNC-Greensboro pitcher Amber Watson beat MSU for the second time in as many days in the second game of the morning. Watson (5-0), who shutout the Spartans yesterday, gave up only one run on eight hits in the complete game victory.
Andrea Harrison of UNCG had an RBI single in the bottom of the third for the game's first run. UNCG expanded its lead to two runs on an Amanda Johnson double in the fourth. Johnson knocked in Penny Thompson, who reached second after a Spartan two-base error in the outfield.
MSU countered with a run in the fifth to cut the lead to one as Lewis hit a two-out single to center, plating Schick. The Spartans threatened to tie the game in the sixth. Janette Hurtado (Fr., Rowland Heights/Diamond Bar) hit a one-out single to put the tying run on base. Lauren Pedersen (Fr., Portage/Northern), who came in to pinch run for Hurtado, advanced to second on a ground ball and to third on a passed ball, but a Spartan grounder ended the inning and the scoring threat.
Becky Gray (Sr., Burr Oak/Burr Oak) tossed six innings in the complete game loss. Gray (1-3) gave up two runs, one earned, and struck out nine batters a day after setting a new MSU single-game mark with 13 strikeouts.
MSU returns to action Saturday, March 2, to face South Carolina in the Plant City Tournament in Plant City, Fla., beginning at 1 p.m.
Game Summaries:
Game One Summary R H EElon 100 000 0- 1 4 1MSU 000 011 0- 2 8 1
WP: Beech-MSU (1-2)LP: Borgaard-ELON (0-4)
Game Two Summary R H EMSU 000 010 0- 1 8 1UNCG 001 100 x- 2 4 0
WP: Watson-UNCG (5-0)LP: Gray-MSU (1-3)
Spartan Notebook:
* Jacquie Joseph recorded her 391th career victory today and her 255th at MSU. She is now only nine wins away from the 400-win plateau and five away from becoming MSU's all-time winningest coach.
* Sheridan Fowler (Fr., Thousand Oaks, Calif./Thousand Oaks) recorded her first collegiate hit with a pinch-hit single to left field in the sixth inning against Elon.
* Becky Gray and Jessica Beech have struck out a combined 41 batters in the last four games.
