Freshmen Come up Big in Eight-Inning Win Over Wisconsin

Friday, February 26

Santa Barbara, Calif.

10:45 a.m.

Drexel University

Wisconsin

Freshmen Come up Big in Eight-Inning Win Over Wisconsin

2/26/2010 6:26:07 PM | Softball

Box Score

Santa Barbara, Calif. - Rookie Hanna Parrish pulled a single down the first base line to bring home Paige Collings and give Drexel (3-4) a 6-5 win over Wisconsin in eight innings at the UCSB Gaucho Classic. Freshman Jen Reading hit a pinch-hit home run in the bottom of the seventh inning to tie the game and forece extra frames and then rallied from two runs down in the eighth inning with the international tie-breaker rule in effect.

Reading's clutch blast was her first career hit as a Dragon and could not have come at a better time, squaring the game at 3-3 after Drexel surrendered a 2-1 lead in the previous inning. Parrish went 2-for-5 in the game. Senior Ashley Botelho went 2-for-4 and Laura Stagliano and Kelly Downes both added RBI hits to the winning effort.

Hillary Allen pitched effectively through five and one third innings, allowing three runs on four hits and two walks and striking out three. Freshman Shyann Beach relieved Allen in the sixth inning and pitched the final two and two-thirds innings to pick up her first career win. Beach allowed one earned run on three hits and a walk and struckout one batter.

Letty Olivarez incurred the loss for the Badgers she threw seven and two-thirds innings and allowed six runs, three of them earned, on nine hits and three walks while striking out four Dragons.

Drexel scored a run in each in the second and third innings to take a 2-1 lead over Wiconsin. The Dragons capitalized on an error and an wild pitch to square the game at 1-1 in the second inning.

Devon Metcalf singled and stole second to set up a run for the Dragons in the third inning. She went to thrid on a hit by Botelho and came home to score when Paige Collings reached on an error by the Badgers' first baseman.

Allen held Wisconsin off the scoreboard for the next two innings before an error by Metcalf at third base allowed the lead-off runner to reach in the sixth inning. Two hits later, she came around to score. Beach relieved Allen with two runners on and intentionally walked the next batter to set up a force at all the bases. Unfortunately she could not find the strike zone on the next batter and walked in Wisconsin's go-ahead run, making it a 3-2 game. She then induced a foul pop out and a ground out to end the inning.

With the Badgers on top 3-2 in the bottom of the seventhing inning, Parrish struckout to lead off the frame. Reading pinch hit for Rachel Campbell in the two hole in the line up and came up with a game-tying round-tripper ticketed for left field.

The game entered the eighth inning with the international tie-breaker rule in effect, placing a runner at second base to start the frame. After a sacrifice bunt moved the Badger to third, back-to-back doubles gave Wisconsin a 5-3 lead.

Rookie Amanda Bachmann took second for Drexel to start the bottom of the eighth inning. Collings led off with a single. Kelly Downes brought Bachmann home with a single to left field. A Caprice DiMirjian groundout moved runners to second and third with two outs. But the speedy Laura Stagliano and Hanna Parrish followed with singles legged out down the first base line to drive home runs and give Drexel the thrilling 6-5 win.