May 20, 2011
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LOUISVILLE, Ky. - In a game that was a complicated scoring affair to say the least, the No. 7-seeded California softball team came away with a 6-3 win over Jacksonville State in the opening game of the Louisville Regional. The Golden Bears (40-10) scored six runs off 13 hits and six Gamecock errors to begin the 2011 postseason.
Cal tallied one run in the bottom of the second and third to earn the early 2-0 lead and then unleashed with four runs in the bottom of the fifth. JSU worked extremely well with the bases loaded and no outs in the top of the seventh, in which the Gamecocks plated all three of their runs.
Jolene Henderson earned the win, pitching all seven innings and allowing just two earned runs. JSU starter Kristin Graham suffered the loss, lasting 4.1 innings and giving up three earned runs and six hits.
Frani Echavarria paced the Bears with three RBI while Jamia Reid, Britt Vonk and Jace Williams all had two RBI themselves.
Cal got things start in the bottom of the second. Reid connected with a single to left, plating Victoria Jones, who had reached on an error.
In the bottom of the third, Britt Vonk singled to third and moved to around to third base thanks to a throwing error. She came home to score when Williams looked like she had a triple to the wall in right-center in the bag, but was sadly called out at third.
Ashley Decker put down a one-out bunt less than a foot away from the plate to give Cal runners at the corners after Williams had walked and moved to second on a wild pitch. Echavarria singled to short, scoring Williams from third. Victoria Jones grounded back to Graham in the circle and Graham mishandled the throw, chucking it into right field, which allowed Decker to score. Wallace then doubled to right, scoring Echavarria. An illegal pitch with Jamia Reid in the batter's box with the bases loaded brought home Victoria Jones.
After six complete innings, Jacksonville State got on the board with a bases-loaded, no-out grounder that went Jordan Wallace-Victoria Jones-Jordan Wallace. One more run scored, when Abbey Strepp dropped a single in shallow left field, right next to the line. A wild pitch brought home the final Gamecock of the game.
What's Next:
Cal will take on Louisville at 11 a.m. PT on Saturday.
