Huskers Rally for Third Straight Win

Las Cruces, N.M. ? Trailing by one in the bottom of the sixth inning, the Nebraska softball team exploded for six runs and rallied to defeat Penn State, 11-6, on Sunday at the Hotel Encanto Tournament in Las Cruces, N.M.

Penn State broke a 5-5 tie with an unearned run in the top of the fifth inning and the Nittany Lions held the 6-5 advantage until the Huskers’ final at bat. A pair of one-out singles put runners on first and second for sophomore Ashley Guile, who delivered a clutch two-run double to put the Huskers on top.

Freshman Gabby Banda then added to the lead with a two-out RBI single, before sophomore Kirby Wright connected on a two-run homer to left center. The homer was the first of Wright’s career and put Nebraska on top 10-6. A hit batter and an error loaded the bases and the sixth run of the inning came home on an illegal pitch.

The rally allowed the Huskers to pick up their third straight victory and made a winner out of junior right-hander Robin Mackin, who did not allow a run over the final 2.1 innings. Mackin (2-1) got the Huskers out of a bases-loaded jam in the fifth, then allowed only two baserunners over the final two frames.

All three Husker pitchers saw action in the game and the staff combined for 13 strikeouts, striking out the side three times. Sophomore right-hander Ashley Hagemann earned the start and struck out seven in only 3.2 innings, but she was charged with five runs. Hagemann was hurt by the long ball, as three of the four hits she allowed were home runs, including a pair of two-run shots in the fourth inning. Senior right-hander Alex Hupp pitched one inning and allowed only one unearned run.

But the story of the game was the Husker offense, led by Guile. Guile had a go-ahead three-run double in the fourth inning and then drove in the game-winning runs with her two-run double in the sixth. She finished the game 2-for-3 with a walk and a career-high five RBIs. Sophomore Nikki Haget finished 2-for-4 with an RBI and scored a career-high three times, while registering her third consecutive multi-hit game. Wright finished with a career-high two RBIs thanks to her home run, as Nebraska pounded out 10 hits while scoring a season-high 11 runs.

Before the late-inning dramatics, the first five innings of the contest featured a back-and-forth affair. After Hagemann struck out the side in the top of the first, Nebraska scored one run in the bottom of the frame to lead 1-0 after an inning of play for the fifth time in six games.

A pair of walks and a stolen base put runners at the corners with only one out when freshman Brooke Thomason grounded a 3-0 pitch through the left side for an RBI single that scored Haget. The Huskers had a chance for more, but stranded runners at second and third.

Penn State starting pitcher Kimi Wong got the run back herself in the top of the second, when she launched a 2-1 pitch deep to left for a two-out solo homer.

The Huskers scored again in the bottom of the second thanks to a two-out rally. Junior Tori Tyson reached on a two-out error and classmate Heidi Foland was hit by a pitch. With runners at first and second, Haget grounded an RBI single through the right side to score Tyson and give Nebraska a 2-1 lead.

After a scoreless third inning, Penn State took its first lead in the top of the fourth when Kailyn Johnson launched a two-run homer over the center field fence. Three batters later, Mary Ostman uncorked another two-run homer to stretch the lead to 5-2.

A two-out rally tied the game at 5-5 in the bottom of the frame. A pair of hit batters and a walk loaded the bases with two outs for Guile, who ripped a shot just fair down the right field line. The ball rolled all the way to the wall and cleared the bases for a two-run double.

A costly two-out throwing error on a routine ground ball cost the Huskers a run in top of the fifth. Back-to-back walks then loaded the bases with two outs before Mackin struck out Lisa Akamine to prevent further damage.

Mackin then kept the Nittany Lions off the scoreboard the rest of the way to allow the Husker offense to come back.

Akamine (1-1) took the loss for Penn State (3-2), allowing six runs (five earned) on seven hits in 2.0 innings of relief.

Nebraska (3-3) hits the road again next week when it travels to Auburn, Ala., for the Tiger Invitational on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Free live audio of all games will be available on Huskers.com.

Box Score 2010 Nebraska Softball Penn State vs Nebraska Feb 14, 2010 at Las Cruces, N.M. (NMSU Softball Cmplx)

Penn State 6 (3-2)

Player AB R H RBI BB SO PO A LOB ------------------------------------------------------ Bell,Cassidy cf.......... 4 0 0 0 0 2 1 0 0 Griffith,Ashley lf....... 3 1 1 0 1 0 2 0 0 Giordano,Desi 3b......... 4 0 0 0 0 4 1 3 2 Collett,Danee c.......... 4 1 1 0 0 1 4 0 1 Johnson,Kailyn dp........ 3 1 1 2 1 0 0 0 0 Hill,Jackie 1b........... 2 1 0 0 2 0 6 0 0 Wong,Kimi p.............. 2 1 1 1 0 1 0 2 0 Akamine,Lisa ph/p....... 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 3 Ostman,Mary rf........... 3 1 2 2 0 1 1 0 0 Renwick,Alyssa ss........ 3 0 0 0 0 3 1 3 0 Mcnair,Ellen 2b.......... 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 Totals................... 29 6 6 5 4 13 18 8 6

Nebraska 11 (3-3)

Player AB R H RBI BB SO PO A LOB ------------------------------------------------------ Foland, Heidi 2b......... 2 2 1 0 2 0 1 2 0 Haget, Nikki lf.......... 4 3 2 1 0 1 2 0 3 Guile, Ashley 1b......... 3 0 2 5 1 0 6 0 2 Southworth, Megan pr.... 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Thomason, Brooke cf...... 4 0 1 1 0 2 0 0 1 Banda, Gabby 3b.......... 4 1 1 1 0 0 0 1 0 Wright, Kirby c.......... 4 1 1 2 0 1 12 1 2 Hupp, Alex dp/p.......... 2 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 Hagemann, Ashley p/dp.... 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 Drake, Madison pr....... 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Mackin, Robin p......... 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 Tyson, Tori rf........... 3 2 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 Barrett, Whitney ss...... 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Totals................... 30 11 10 10 4 4 21 6 9

Score by Innings R H E ----------------------------------------- Penn State.......... 010 410 0 - 6 6 2 Nebraska............ 110 306 X - 11 10 2 -----------------------------------------

E - Giordano; Renwick; Barrett 2(6). LOB - Nittany Lion 6; Huskers 9. 2B - Ostman; Guile 2(4). 3B - Griffith. HR - Johnson; Wong; Ostman; Wright(1). HBP - Foland; Haget; Hupp 2. SB - Haget(3).

Penn State IP H R ER BB SO AB BF NP -------------------------------------------------- Wong,Kimi........... 4.0 3 5 4 3 3 16 22 80 Akamine,Lisa........ 2.0 7 6 5 1 1 14 16 53

Nebraska IP H R ER BB SO AB BF NP -------------------------------------------------- Hagemann, Ashley.... 3.2 4 5 5 1 7 16 17 73 Hupp, Alex.......... 1.0 1 1 0 1 2 5 6 30 Mackin, Robin....... 2.1 1 0 0 2 4 8 10 45

Win - Mackin (2-1). Loss - Akamine (1-1). Save - None. WP - Wong 4. HBP - by Wong (Foland); by Wong (Hupp); by Wong (Haget); by Akamine (Hupp). BK - Akamine. PB - Collett. Pitches/strikes: Wong 80/39; Akamine 53/30; Hagemann 73/51; Hupp 30/18; Mackin 45/28. Umpires - Start: 9:58 am Time: 2:26 Attendance: Game: NU6