Kelsey Neal's Two Homeruns Not Enough in 7-5 Loss to Case

BOX | CHAMPIONSHIP WEBSITE

Altamonte Springs, Fla., March 16, 2012 – Sophomore Kelsey Neal went 2-for-3 with two homeruns and five RBIs but it was not enough as the No. 21 ranked Washington University in St. Louis softball team dropped a 7-5 decision to Case Western Reserve University on Friday afternoon at the 2012 University Athletic Association (UAA) Championship Tournament in Altamonte Springs, Fla.

Case Western Reserve (6-4, 3-2 UAA) jumped on Neal with a run in the first and three in the second to move ahead 4-0. The Bears answered right back with three runs of their own in the bottom half of the inning following a towering three-run home run by Neal.

The Spartans added two runs in the top of the sixth to make it 6-3, but Neal answered back in the bottom of the inning. Sophomore Maggie Mullen led off with her second double of the game, and then Neal sent the first pitch from Case starter Rebecca Taylor into deep left field for a homerun. The homerun for Neal was her third of the year and eighth of her career.

Mullen was the other bright spot on offense for the Bears going 2-for-2 with two doubles and two run scored. Case Western Reserve outslugged Washington U. 13-8, and took advantage of two errors by the Bears. Neal (4-2) took the loss on the mound allowing four hits and four earned runs in 1 1/3 innings pitched. Senior Olivia Cook threw out of relief for the second-straight day and allowed nine hits and two earned runs in 5 2/3 innings pitched.

Washington University (9-4, 3-3 UAA) concludes play in the 2012 UAA Championship Tournament on Saturday, March 17, with a pair of games against No. 2 Emory University at 10 a.m. (ET) and Brandeis University at 12:30 p.m. (ET).

Through six games played in the UAA Championship, the Bears are second in fielding percentage (.957) third in batting (.308) and fourth in pitching (4.57 ERA). Senior Corissa Santos (.409), freshman Adrienne White (.381) and Mullen (.353) rank in the top-10 in batting average.

Bear Notebook: Senior Alyssa Abramoski and Santos each started their 142nd game of their career on Friday … Santos’ double in the third inning was her 37th, tied for fifth most in school history.