Game Stats
ORLANDO, Fla. - Western Michigan softball jumped out to a five-run lead after scoring a
pair in the first inning and three more in the third but the Broncos
had to side-step a rare inside the park grand slam to defeat Maine,
6-4, to close out the 2009 UCF Invitational on Sunday morning.
Lexi Jager and Meghan Thomas each collected a pair of hits in the Broncos' fourth win of the season with Thomas plating a pair of runs on a two-out double in the third inning to score Jager and Samantha Vargocko. Jager had led off the third frame with a base hit through the left side and Vargocko reached on a fielding error two batters later.
Western Michigan opened the scoring in the bottom of the first inning when, again, Jager led off the inning with a base hit through the left side. Amanda McBride followed with a base on balls. Both base runners advanced whehn Gracie Barstad grounded out to the shortstop, setting the table for starting pitcher Meredith Whitney. Whitney placed a single up the middle to clear the bases and join Thomas with two RBIs on the day.
Whitney seemed to cruising along in the circle, allowing just two hits heading into the Black Bears' half of the fifth inning. Maine opened the fifth with a lead-off double from Kali Burnham followed by a walk for Erin Iandoli. Lyndsey Jenkins advanced the runners with an infield base hit to third, bringing lead-off hitter and starting pitcher Alexis Souhlaris to the plate. Souhlaris kept the ball in the park but the Broncos could not keep her or the other three base runners on the base path as she brought four runs with an inside the park home run.
With the Broncos clinging to a slim one-run advantage in the bottom of the sixth, Thomas hit her second double of the game to lead off the inning. Head coach Kathy Leitke made the call to have Lauren Fuller pinch hit for Kayla Houston and it was the right one. The senior singled through the right side, giving the speedy Thomas the ability to score from second base. Thomas finished the game 2-for-3 at the plate with two RBIs and a run scored.
For the tournament, Jager led the Broncos offensively, hitting .471 (8-for-17) with four RBIs, a triple and a home run. Whitney led WMU in the circle, going 2-1 with 23 strike outs in three starts and two complete games.
Western Michigan will play a mid-week game on March 4 in Orlando, Fla., against Loyola-Chicago (1 p.m.) before heading to Clearwater, Fla., for the Under Armour Invitational hosted by South Florida.
