Wichita State shocks #21 Softball, sweeps Saturday doubleheader

Saturday, May 5

Carbondale, Ill.

12:00 PM

Southern Illinois University

37-12, 16-6

Wichita State

35-26, 17-8

Wichita State

Southern Illinois

Wichita State shocks #21 Softball, sweeps Saturday doubleheader

05/05/2007 | 12:00:00 | Softball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2

May 5, 2007

Game 1 Box Score
Game 2 Box Score

By Matt Crouch
www.SIUSalukis.com

CARBONDALE, Ill. - Errors along with struggles at the plate spelled trouble for the No. 21 Southern Illinois University softball team Saturday as the Salukis dropped their doubleheader to Wichita State, 5-3 and 2-1.

Both games went into extra innings with the second game, a 12-inning loss, being the longest game ever at Charlotte West Stadium.

SIU (37-13, 16-7 MVC) is now playing for third place in the Missouri Valley Conference race as Creighton split with Bradley to clinch the league championship and Illinois State swept Missouri State to move ahead of the Salukis.

The winner of Sunday's single game between Southern Illinois and the Shockers (36-26, 18-8 MVC) will take third place in the Valley while the loser falls to fourth place.

"I just told the team that we could have all the excuses we wanted - we have a ton of people hurt, we're down to a very small roster - but we've got to try to find a way to get a win tomorrow," said SIU head coach Kerri Blaylock.

She attributed some of Southern's struggles to the amazing pitching performance put on Saturday by the Wichita State duo of Margo Pruis and Ashly Bright. The pair combined for 12 strikeouts in each of the games.

"They threw extremely well today, they threw as well as any pitching staff we have seen all year long. We threw well too, but they got the hits that they needed to.," said Blaylock.

Though her team is down, Blaylock does not think they are out as she believes her squad will respond well in Sunday's final game.

"We still have something to prove, we are playing for third place, we need to try to come out and get us a win."

Southern Illinois and Wichita State are scheduled to play their final game of the regular season at 12 p.m., Sunday at Charlotte West Stadium.

Game 1 - WSU - 5 / SIU - 3 (10 innings)
A fourth-inning error by Katie Wagner proved costly for the Salukis as Wichita State took the win in the first game in a 5-3, 10-inning decision.

The Shockers used a pair of base hits and a stolen base in the second inning to get on the scoreboard first, 1-0.

Freshman Alicia Garza answered with a solo home run in the third inning to even the score and keep Southern in the game.

But, a throwing error by Wagner in the fourth inning gave WSU an opportunity to score more runs as they started the inning with two runners on and no outs.

The Salukis responded well, getting the next two batters out, but a pair of two-out singles put two more runs on the board, giving the Shockers a 3-1 lead.

Down by two in the bottom of the seventh inning, SIU used Wichita State's own mistakes against them, capitalizing on a wild pitch and a bases-loaded walk to even the score at 3-3.

The teams went scoreless through the eighth and ninth innings, but Wichita State used back-to-back-to-back-to-back singles in the top of the 10th inning to get two more across and take the 5-3 win.

Cassidy Scoggins pitched all 10 innings for SIU, striking out four while giving up two walks and 12 hits for five runs, only three of which were earned.

Pruis started and pitched the first 6.1 innings, striking out eight while giving up three hits and three walks for three runs. Bright finished the game, giving up a walk and a hit while striking out four.

The Salukis worked the Shocker pitching staff well early in the game, but missed on some timely hitting as SIU ended both the second and seventh innings with the bases loaded.

Game 2 - WSU - 2 / SIU - 1 (12 innings)
Coming off of the longest game ever at Charlotte West Stadium in the first game, the Salukis and Shockers went at it again in the second game, playing the longest game a SIU's home facility for the second time in a day.

Playing in another pitchers' duel, the teams went scoreless until the sixth inning when Wichita State took a 1-0 lead off of a Tiffanie Dismore error and a Shocker double.

WSU's Brooke Usher hit a long ball to the left-field warning track with two outs on the board. Dismore made her way back and had the ball in her glove, but lost it on the way down as Usher made her way safely to second base.

With a runner in scoring position, Britnee Barnett hit a double to left-center, bring in Usher and giving the Shockers a 1-0 lead.

SIU evened the score in the bottom half of the inning with back-to-back doubles by Becky Wegmann and Garza.

The seventh inning passed with no more scoring and proceeded to the 12th inning when Cynthia Verhulst hit her 14th home run of the season, a WSU single-season record, to put the Shockers back on top, 2-1.

SIU went down in order in the bottom half of the inning, dropping its second game in a row to Wichita State.

Senior Ashley Hamby pitched the complete game for SIU. She struck out three batters while giving up five hits and a walk for two runs, only one of which was earned.

Bright and Pruis again split the pitching duties for the Shockers. Bright got the start and pitched 8.2 innings, striking out nine while giving up three hits and two walk for a run. Pruis finished the game, striking out three in her 3.1 innings while giving up only one hit.

NOTES: - With this weekend being the final home series for SIU, the Saluki senior class (Amanda Clifton, Ashley Hamby, Cassidy Scoggins) was honored following Saturday's games... The last time that Wichita State won a series against SIU, it was 2004 in Wichita, Kan.