Spring Break
SOFTBALL: Walk-off homers fuel team
by Melissa Siegel
Staff writer
Sports | 3/18/08
Posted online at 2:46 AM EST on 3/18/08
With a runner on second base and a tied score in the seventh inning of the softball team's game against University Athletic Association champion Washington University in St. Louis last Saturday, first baseman Courtney Kelley '11 had a chance to give the Judges the upset victory.
She did so emphatically, hitting the team's second walk-off home run of the week to give the Judges a 3-1 win, snapping the Bears' 14-game winning streak and handing them their only UAA loss. The Judges ended in a tie for third place in the UAA at 3-5, one game better than their finish last season, and are now 5-5 this season.
"I'm happy to go out on the high note [of beating WashU], but all week, we were one execution away from possibly winning all eight games in the UAA," coach Jessica Johnson said.
The Judges fell behind 1-0 in the first inning after an error by second baseman Melisa Cagar '11 led to a Bears run, but pitcher Natalie Volpe '08 kept the game close, allowing just four more base runners the rest of the game. Volpe then tied the game in the fourth inning with a double to drive in Streilein, who had led off the inning with a single.
The game remained tied until the seventh inning, when Volpe reached base on sophomore second baseman Megan Fieser's throwing error. She advanced to second on catcher Erin Ross' '10 ground ball, setting up Kelley's game-winner.
"They came in second place in Division III last year, so it's such a huge accomplishment for us [to beat them]," third baseman Danielle Lavallee '11 said. "It shows that we can really play at their level, if not better."
The Judges also got a walk-off home run from first baseman Allie Mussen '10 in the first game of the week against Case Western Reserve University last Tuesday. Case Western tied the game at one in the top of the sixth inning, but Mussen's blast in the bottom of the seventh inning gave Brandeis a 3-1 win and preserved a three-hit complete game pitching effort from Streilein.
She did so emphatically, hitting the team's second walk-off home run of the week to give the Judges a 3-1 win, snapping the Bears' 14-game winning streak and handing them their only UAA loss. The Judges ended in a tie for third place in the UAA at 3-5, one game better than their finish last season, and are now 5-5 this season.
"I'm happy to go out on the high note [of beating WashU], but all week, we were one execution away from possibly winning all eight games in the UAA," coach Jessica Johnson said.
The Judges fell behind 1-0 in the first inning after an error by second baseman Melisa Cagar '11 led to a Bears run, but pitcher Natalie Volpe '08 kept the game close, allowing just four more base runners the rest of the game. Volpe then tied the game in the fourth inning with a double to drive in Streilein, who had led off the inning with a single.
The game remained tied until the seventh inning, when Volpe reached base on sophomore second baseman Megan Fieser's throwing error. She advanced to second on catcher Erin Ross' '10 ground ball, setting up Kelley's game-winner.
"They came in second place in Division III last year, so it's such a huge accomplishment for us [to beat them]," third baseman Danielle Lavallee '11 said. "It shows that we can really play at their level, if not better."
The Judges also got a walk-off home run from first baseman Allie Mussen '10 in the first game of the week against Case Western Reserve University last Tuesday. Case Western tied the game at one in the top of the sixth inning, but Mussen's blast in the bottom of the seventh inning gave Brandeis a 3-1 win and preserved a three-hit complete game pitching effort from Streilein.
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