Softball Picks up Two Key Regional Wins at IWU Tournament

BOX 1 | BOX 2

Bloomington, Ill, April 9, 2011 – The Washington University in St. Louis softball team picked up two key regional victories on Saturday afternoon at the Illinois Wesleyan University Tournament on Saturday afternoon in Bloomington, Ill.

Washington U. defeated the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh, 4-1, in the opening game, and then posted a 5-4 eight-inning victory over No. 21 ranked and host Illinois Wesleyan in game two.

UW-Oshkosh (13-5) took a 1-0 lead in the top of the first inning after the first four runners reached base off of senior pitcher Claire Voris. Jamie Braden’s single to centerfield drove in Sydnee Wyss for the lone run of the game for the Titans with no one out. From there it was all Voris, as she retired 15-straight batters before a single by Kaelyn Hogan in the top of the sixth.

Freshman Kelsey Neal knotted the contest with a solo homerun to lead off the top of the fifth inning. The homerun for Neal was the third of the season.

The Bears got the lead for the good in the bottom of the sixth scoring three runs on four hits. Junior Corissa Santos and senior Ally Berenter singled with one out, and then Neal singled up the middle driving in sophomore pinch-runner Hilary Stepansky. Sophomore pinch-hitter Alex Fjeldheim came through in the next at-bat, driving in two runs to push Washington U.’s lead to 4-1.

Voris allowed two hits and one earned run, while striking 11, as she picked up her ninth win of the season. Berenter, Neal and Santos each recorded a pair of hits for Washington University, who had 11 hits in the game-one victory.

Junior Alyssa Abramoski got things going for Washington U. in the top of the first inning against IWU, as she sent a pitch from starter Alyssa Vorel over the right field fence for a solo homerun. The homerun for Abramoski was her fifth of the season.

Illinois Wesleyan (15-5) tied the game with a run in the bottom of the fifth on an RBI groundout by Vorel. Junior Olivia Cook made the start for Washington U., and allowed just three hits and an earned run in the first five innings.

The Bears regained the lead with a run in the sixth on an RBI groundout by freshman Maggie Mullen, but an RBI single by IWU’s Kaity Crane in the bottom half of the inning knotted the score at 2-2. The Titans got the first two runs on in the bottom of the seventh before Voris replaced Cook on the mound. Voris retired the next three batters to send the game to extra innings.

The Bears scored three runs on two hits in the top of the eighth inning to take a 5-2 lead. Santos drove in the first run with an RBI single, and then Neal delivered the game-winning hit by driving in two with a two RBI single to centerfield. Illinois Wesleyan loaded the bases with no one outs in the eighth trailing 5-3, but Voris got three of the last four batters to secure the 5-4 victory.

Cook allowed six hits and two earned runs in six innings pitched, while Voris (10-3) pitched two innings in relief to pick up the victory. Voris gave up just one hit and one earned run while striking out two.

Washington U. and Illinois Wesleyan each had seven hits in game two. Neal was 2-for-4 with two RBIs, while Santos was 2-for-3 with an RBI and a run scored.

Washington University (22-7-1) will host its 2011 National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) StrikeOut Cancer event during its doubleheader on Sunday, April 10, against local-rival Webster University beginning at Noon. Washington U. and Webster University will combine efforts to help raise cancer awareness with each team donning commemorative warm-up t-shirts prior to Sunday’s doubleheader.

Bear Notebook: Game two against Illinois Wesleyan took two hours and 35 minutes … Voris’ 13 strikeouts in nine innings pitched upped her career total to 739, 12 shy of cracking the top-25 all-time in Division III history … Neal was 4-for-7 with four RBIs and two runs scored in the two games, while Santos was 4-for-6 with an RBI.