BATON ROUGE — With the bases loaded and one out in the top of the seventh, ULL relief pitcher Melissa Coronado walked Hofstra pitcher Alicia Smith to put the Flying Dutchwomen ahead 2-1 and win the first game of the 2000 NCAA Softball Regional at Tiger Park in Baton Rouge Thursday afternoon.
Smith, who drove in both Flying Dutchwomen runs, braved the 90-degree temperatures and improved to 21-7 after pitching six innings, giving up one earned run on five hits. She walked three and struckout six. Jen Smith pitched the seventh to pick up her fifth save of the season.
“The heat is definitely a lot different. It makes you feel better physically because youre looser and you feel more relaxed. We definitely felt it toward the sixth or seventh inning,” Alicia Smith said after the game. “Its a lot easier knowing that I have someone like Jen (Jen Smith who earned the save) in the bullpen warming up. Its like having two number-ones.”
Hofstra will play the winner of the Southern Miss-Oregon game Friday at 7 p.m. while Louisiana-Lafayette will try to avoid elimination against the winner of the LSU-Northwestern State game Friday at 4 p.m.
ULL starter Kim Dunlop (18-7) received the loss after pitched 6 1/3 innings, giving up two earned runs on six hits while walking three and striking out two.
“We certainly didnt make anything happen out there, and thats kind of been the epitome of our season this year,” ULL head coach Yvette Girouard said. “We have relied on four or five kids to really carry us, and we didnt get any production out of them today. The bottom line is you cant put people on base on a free ride and think youre going to escape alive if youre not hitting the ball.”
After Hofstra went down in order in the top of the first, UL-Lafayette was unable to take advantage of a two-out walked to leading hitter Tiffany Clark in the bottom of the first as Dutchwoman starting pitcher Alicia Smith struckout Jana Mower to end the threat.
In the top of the second, Hofstra put two runners aboard on singles by Amanda Hallaway and Jessica Luna, however, ULL starter Kim Dunlap struckout No. 9 hitter Samantha Schour looking for the third out.
ULL earned its first hit off of Smith in the bottom of the second on a two-out single by catcher Megan Fields. No. 9 hitter Micah Barbato then grounded into a fielder’s choice to end the inning.
The Flying Dutchwomen stranded two more runners in the top of the third after Hallaway grounded into a fielder’s choice with runners on first and second and two outs.
The Lady Cajuns’ Barbato doubled down the left field line to open the bottom of the third and advanced to third on a sacrifice bunt by leadoff hitter Jerie Alexander. However, ULL grounded out twice separated by a walk to Clark to end the threat once again.
Hofstra’s Jen Smith picked up the Flying Dutchwomen’s fifth hit of the game, a single, and became its fifth stranded runner in the top of the fourth as Lindsay Sawyer struckout looking with two outs.
ULL became the first team to convert a scoring opportunity in the bottom of the fourth when Michelle Hummel singled, advanced to second on a single by Fields and scored on a single to left field by third baseman Summar Lapeyrouse to take a 1-0 lead.
Hofstra tied the game at 1-1 on a single by Schour, a sacrifice bunt by LaMeka Anderson, a ground out by Christine Moran to advance Schour to third and an RBI single by pitcher Alicia Smith.
After ULL’s Nos. 1-3 hitters went down in order in the bottom of the fifth, Hofstra followed suit in the top of the sixth.
Mower opened the bottom of the sixth with a walk and advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt, however, a pop out and a strikeout ended the inning without a run.
Sawyer singled and Schour walked to start the top of the seventh for Hofstra and each advanced a base on a sacrifice bunt by Anderson. With runners on second and third and one out, Moran was hit by a pitch to load the bases. After freshman Heather Brousseau pinch ran for Sawyer at third base, ULL relief pitcher Melissa Coronado made her 28th appearance of the season. On a full count, Hofstra’s Alicia Smith was walked to score Brousseau from third and take a 2-1 lead. Lisa Ciavardini struckout to end the inning.
After Alicia Smith walked Lapeyrouse to open the seventh, Jen Smith entered in relief for the Flying Dutchwomen. Jen Smith, no relation to Alicia, made her 32nd appearance of the season with no outs and the winning run at the plate. Smith got the first out on an attempted sacrifice bunt by Barbato that turned into a fielder’s choice as Smith threw pinch runner Stacey Weeks out at second.
Barbato then stole second and advanced to third on a groundout by Alexander. With two outs, ULL’s Alana Addison grounded out to third to end the game.
This was the first game of the three-game first day of regional play. Southern Miss and Oregon will play the second game at 4 p.m. before LSU and Northwestern State square off in the night cap at 7 p.m. CDT.