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Coan And Adkins Lead No. 14 Softball Past BU, 5-1, In NCAA Tournament Opener

May 15, 2009

Box Score |  Quotes

ATLANTA – Sophomore Kristen Adkins’s three-run home run highlighted a five-run bottom of the sixth inning as the No. 14 Georgia Tech Softball Team (44-13) came back to beat Boston University (41-17), 5-1, in the second game of the NCAA Softball Atlanta Regional Friday night at Mewborn Field.

The Yellow Jackets will now play Auburn in a winner’s bracket game at 1 p.m. tomorrow. The Tigers defeated Iowa, 1-0, earlier today. BU and Iowa will play an elimination game at 3:30 p.m.

Freshman Jessica Coan (7-3) picked up the win for the Yellow Jackets as she allowed one run on four hits and two walks. Coan struck out a career-high 11 batters.

The game was delayed for an hour and 22 minutes at the start as a thunderstorm moved through about 15 minutes before the scheduled first pitch, but when play resumed at 8:52 p.m. EDT it was a pitcher’s duel between Tech freshman Jessica Coan and BU’s Cassidi Hardy.

Both teams went nine up and nine down the first time though the order as Coan recorded five strikeouts in the first three frames. Coan fanned the first two batters as well in the top of the fourth inning, but a double into the right-center field gap by Melissa Dubay was the first base runner for either team. Coan came back to get Christy Leath on a foul out to end the inning.

Georgia Tech had its best chance to score in the bottom of the fifth inning. Sophomore Kristen Adkins led off with an infield single and then went to second base on a passed ball. With one out, sophomore Caroline Hilton was hit by a pitch putting two on with one out, but freshman Jessica Sinclair hit into an inning-ending double-play.

BU broke through into the scoring column first in the top of the sixth inning. Shayne Lotito walked with one out, went to second base on a Coan wild pitch and then came around to score when April Setterlund singled up with the middle.

In the bottom of the sixth inning, Georgia Tech’s bats woke up. Sophomore Christy Jones led off the inning by reaching on an error by Hardy and then went to third base when redshirt junior Jen Yee laced a double off the fence in right field. Senior Blair Shimandle then hit a chopper to BU first baseman Rachel Hebert. Hebert threw home and the ball was there in time, but a perfect slide by Jones avoided the tag and tied the game.

Senior Whitney Haller gave the Yellow Jackets the lead when her high-chopper found its way through the left side for a RBI single and then with two on and one out, Adkins blew the game wide open when she blasted a three-run home run over the fence in left field. For Adkins, it was her ninth home run of the season and eighth that she has hit at Mewborn Field.

Coan worked around a leadoff single in the seventh inning to pick up the win. Hardy took the loss for the Terriers allowing five runs, four of which were earned, on five hits. She struck out six and did not walk a batter.

For complete coverage of the Atlanta Regional, fans can visit the Tournament Central page at www.ramblinwreck.com. The site is updated throughout each day with recaps, box scores, quotes and live stats via Gametracker. In addition, live audio of all Georgia Tech games is available free of charge.

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