Huskers Fall in Extra Innings

Las Cruces, N.M. ? Down to its last strike, Texas-San Antonio rallied for two runs in the seventh inning and then scored twice in the eighth to come back for a 10-9 victory over the Nebraska softball team on Friday afternoon in a marathon game at the NMSU Softball Complex in Las Cruces, N.M.

Nebraska (0-3) erupted for eight runs over the first two innings to build an 8-5 lead. A solo home run pulled the Roadrunners within two as the Husker bats fell silent. NU had a chance to tack on insurance runs when the first two runners reached in the bottom of the sixth, but the Huskers came up empty.

That proved costly, as senior right-hander Alex Hupp retired the first two batters in the seventh before running into trouble. Ahead in the count, Hupp issued a two-out walk on a 3-2 pitch before Rudi Cantu lifted the next pitch over the fence in left for a game-tying two-run homer.

The Huskers then had runners on second and third with only one out in the bottom of the seventh, but could not score.

With the momentum on its side, UTSA secured the win with a two-run eighth inning. With a runner placed on second base in accordance with the tie-breaker, sophomore right-hander Ashley Hagemann walked the first batter. Caitlyn Ivy then hit a blooper to right field that turned into an RBI double when sophomore Nikki Haget's diving attempt at a catch came up short.

A hit batter then loaded the bases before a walk forced in the winning run. Leading 10-8, the Roadrunners had a chance to blow the game wide open with the bases loaded and only one out, but Hagemann dug in to strike out the next two hitters before escaping further damage with an inning-ending fly out.

Nebraska got one run back in the bottom of the inning but that was it. Junior Tori Tyson pinch ran as the Huskers' runner on second base and came around to score when senior Whitney Barrett grounded out for the second out of the inning. Junior Heidi Foland was then hit by a two-out pitch to put the tying run on base for junior pinch-hitter Robin Mackin, who lined out to short to end the game.

Hagemann (0-2) took the loss after starting the contest then coming back in to pitch the eighth. She allowed seven runs on five hits in 2.0 innings, but only two of the runs were earned as Nebraska committed three errors in the game. Hupp tossed 6.0 innings and allowed only two hits, but both were home runs that accounted for the three runs she surrendered. The loss dropped Nebraska to 0-3 on the season, despite the fact that the Huskers out-hit their opponent for the second time in three games.

Emily Humpal (1-0) earned the win for Texas-San Antonio, which improved to 2-0. She tossed the final five innings, allowing only the one unearned run in the eighth while limiting the Huskers to just two hits.

Offensively for NU, seven of the Huskers' nine starting hitters produced an RBI on the night, including Banda and Barrett, who each drove in two runs. Nebraska also hit its first two homers of the season, as junior Heidi Foland had a solo shot and Banda hit a two-run homer.

Foland finished 2-for-4 and scored twice, while sophomore Ashley Guile also went 2-for-4 with two runs. The Huskers were 7-for-10 with a pair of walks and a hit batter over the first two innings, but had only two hits and five baserunners over the final six frames.

It an eventful first inning that lasted 37 minutes, both teams sent nine batters to the plate and combined for eight runs. Nebraska was its own worst enemy in the top of the inning. A leadoff error came around to score and prolonged the inning long enough for a pair of two-out, bases-loaded walks that gave UTSA a 3-0 lead.

The Huskers immediately got a run back in the bottom of the first on a leadoff home run from Foland. Foland quickly fell behind 0-2 before fouling off three two-strike pitches to work the count full. She then ripped an offering well over the 220-foot sign in center for the Huskers’ first home run of the season. Haget followed with a bloop single to center for her first career hit. Following a strikeout, Guile ripped a double off the wall in left center to put runners at second and third.

A hit batter loaded the bases with only one out, and freshman Brooke Thomason lined an RBI single to center field in her first career plate appearance. Trailing 3-2 with the bases still loaded and only one out, sophomore Kirby Wright fought back from a 1-2 count to coax a walk that brought Guile home with the tying run. Freshman Megan Southworth then worked a four-pitch walk to give Nebraska a one-run lead and Barrett closed out the scoring with a sacrifice fly one batter later, as the Huskers led 5-3 after one inning of play.

The offensive outburst continued in the top of the second. A leadoff single and a double quickly cut Nebraska’s lead to 5-4. A dropped fly ball in left field then put runners on second and third with one out and sent Hagemann to the bench. Hupp came on in relief and did not allow a hit, but did issue two walks and threw a wild pitch that allowed the tying run to score.

Nebraska quickly regained the lead in the bottom of the frame. Foland led off with a single, moved up to second on a sacrifice from Haget and scored on an RBI single from junior Julie Brechtel. Then with two outs, Banda ripped a 1-2 offering from new pitcher Morgan Luksa just over the fence in center for a two-run homer. It was the first of her young career and increased the lead to 8-5.

After the first two innings took more than an hour to play and saw 31 batters come to the plate, each team was retired in order in the third. Then after not allowing a hit over her first 2.2 innings of relief, Hupp finally gave up a hit with two outs in the fourth inning as Kristin Kappler launched a solo homer over the wall in left. 

That cut the lead to two and set the stage for UTSA's seventh-inning rally.

Nebraska returns to action tomorrow with a pair of games at the Hotel Encanto Tournament. The Huskers open the day at 11 a.m. against Texas-El Paso before facing Colorado State immediately after the first game. Both games can be heard live on Huskers.com.

Box Score 2010 Nebraska Softball Texas-San Antonio vs Nebraska Feb 12, 2010 at Las Cruces, N.M. (NMSU Softball Cmplx)

Texas-San Antonio 10 (2-0)

Player AB R H RBI BB SO PO A LOB ------------------------------------------------------ Cantu, Rudi cf........... 5 3 2 2 0 0 2 1 0 Kappler, Ashley 2b....... 5 2 1 1 0 1 2 3 0 Ivy, Caitlyn ss.......... 4 2 1 0 1 0 2 3 0 Holmes, Danye p/1b....... 3 1 2 2 2 0 8 1 0 Cato, Kelly pr.......... 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Kappler, Kristin 3b...... 2 1 1 1 2 0 2 2 0 Little, Laura pr........ 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Goff, Nikki lf........... 4 0 0 1 1 3 1 0 2 Humpal, Emily 1b/ph...... 3 0 0 1 2 3 1 3 1 Luksa, Morgan p......... 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Miller, Cassie c......... 3 0 0 1 1 2 6 1 3 Blackburn, Emily ph..... 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Chapman, Chelsey rf...... 2 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 3 Beeson, Samantha ph/rf.. 1 1 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 Sitka, Krista ph/rf..... 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 Totals................... 34 10 7 9 10 11 24 14 12

Nebraska 9 (0-2)

Player AB R H RBI BB SO PO A LOB ------------------------------------------------------ Foland, Heidi 1b......... 4 2 2 1 0 1 8 0 0 Haget, Nikki rf.......... 3 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 2 Mackin, Robin ph........ 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 Brechtel, Julie 2b....... 3 0 1 1 1 2 0 2 0 Guile, Ashley dp......... 4 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 Banda, Gabby 3b.......... 2 2 1 2 0 0 0 4 0 Thomason, Brooke cf...... 4 1 1 1 0 1 2 0 0 Wright, Kirby c.......... 3 0 1 1 1 1 11 0 2 Drake, Madison pr....... 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Tyson, Tori pr.......... 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Southworth, Megan lf..... 2 0 0 1 2 1 1 0 0 Barrett, Whitney ss...... 3 0 0 2 0 0 2 1 0 Hagemann, Ashley p....... 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Hupp, Alex p/pr......... 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Totals................... 29 9 9 9 4 6 24 7 6

Score by Innings R H E ------------------------------------------ Texas-San Antonio... 320 100 22 - 10 7 0 Nebraska............ 530 000 01 - 9 9 3 ------------------------------------------

E - Banda(3); Southworth(1); Barrett(3). LOB - Roadrunners 12; Huskers 6. 2B - Kappler, A.; Holmes; Guile(2); Wright(1). HR - Cantu; Kappler, K.; Foland(1); Banda(1). HBP - Kappler, K.; Foland; Banda. SH - Haget(1); Banda(1). SF - Barrett(1). SB - Cantu.

Texas-San Antonio IP H R ER BB SO AB BF NP -------------------------------------------------- Holmes, Danye....... 1.1 6 7 7 2 1 7 12 56 Luksa, Morgan....... 1.2 1 1 1 0 1 6 6 27 Humpal, Emily....... 5.0 2 1 0 2 4 16 20 81

Nebraska IP H R ER BB SO AB BF NP -------------------------------------------------- Hagemann, Ashley.... 2.0 5 7 2 5 4 13 19 91 Hupp, Alex.......... 6.0 2 3 3 5 7 21 26 103

Win - Humpal (1-0). Loss - Hagemann (0-2). Save - None. WP - Humpal; Hupp 2(2). HBP - by Holmes (Banda); by Hagemann (Kappler, K.); by Humpal (Foland). Pitches/strikes: Holmes 56/31; Luksa 27/16; Humpal 81/47; Hagemann 91/48; Hupp 103/59. Umpires - Start: 3:59 pm Time: 3:20 Attendance: 179 Hagemann faced 3 batters in the 2nd. Game: NU3