March 4, 2007
Middle Tennessee Box Score
Iowa Box Score
WOODSTOCK, Ga. – Sophomore Whitney Haller smashed a walk-off two-run home run in the bottom of the seventh inning of game one and junior Whitney Humphreys (9-1) tossed a three-hit complete-game shutout in the nightcap, striking out a career-high 11, to lead No. 21 Georgia Tech (20-3) past Middle Tennessee (9-12), 8-6, and Iowa (12-7), 6-0, to capture the Silver Championship at the Buzz Classic on Sunday.
Haller finished the afternoon 4-for-7, with a home run and three runs batted in, while senior Caitlin Lever went 5-for-7, with a home run and five RBIs. Sophomore Jennifer Yee finished 4-for-8, while junior Savannah Brown went 3-for-3, with three RBIs and a home run against the MT Blue Raiders.
Sophomore Lacey Richardson (2-1) picked up the win in relief against Middle Tennessee, working 2.0 innings, allowing one run, one earned run and one hit. Sophomore Tiffany Johnson had a no decision, throwing 5.0 innings, five runs, four earned runs, eight hits and struck out five.
Lever was named to the Buzz Classic All-Tournament team after hitting over .600 for the weekend, with a couple of home runs, while driving in seven runs for the Jackets. Winthrop won the Gold Championship Bracket, defeating Radford, 5-0.
In the semifinals against Middle Tennessee, Tech allowed an unearned run in the top of the first inning as the Jackets trailed 1-0.
The Yellow Jackets answered with two runs in the bottom of the second inning on fielder’s choice hits by junior Brittany Barnes and Johnson to give Tech a 2-1 lead.
The Blue Raiders answered with a run in the top of the third inning to tie the game at 2-2. With the bases loaded and one out, Johnson pitched her way out of the jam to keep the game knotted at two.
MT’s Justine Cerda drove in the go ahead run for the Blue Raiders with a sacrifice fly to the fence in left field in the top of the fourth inning as the Jackets trailed for the second time in the game, 3-2.
Brown hit her fourth home run of the season to leadoff the bottom of the fourth inning as Tech tied the game at 3-3.
The Blue Raiders started the fifth inning with consecutive bloop hits, a double and single, and had a double off the wall to plate two more runs and take their third lead of the game, 5-3.
After consecutive two-out singles by Yee and Haller, Lever came up clutch once again for the Jackets with a two-run double off the left field fence and Brown followed with a base hit to right field as Tech regained the lead, 6-5.
Richardson entered the circle for the Rambling Wreck in the top of the sixth inning. The Blue Raiders’ Ashley Cline reached on a hit-by-pitch, stole second, advanced to third on a sacrifice bunt and scored on a ground out to the shortstop as the game was tied for the third time, 6-6.
The Jackets won the game in the bottom of the seventh inning as Yee led off with a triple and scored on a walk-off home run by Haller to win 8-6.
Tech scored eight runs, on 10 hits and committed three errors, while the Blue Raiders scored six runs, on nine hits and had three errors.
In the Silver Championship game against Iowa, Tech broke a scoreless tie in the bottom of the third inning as Haller and junior Brittany Barnes each drove in runs to give the Jackets a 2-0 lead after three innings of play.
Lever capitalized on an Iowa error with two outs as she came to the plate with two outs and runners at the corner, sending her fifth home run of the season over the right center field fence on a line to give the Jackets a five-run lead, 5-0.
Tech tacked on another run in the bottom of the sixth inning as the Iowa left fielder dropped a fly ball with two outs off the bat of Lever as the Jackets went to the seventh up by six.
The Jackets scored six runs, on nine hits and had no errors, while Iowa had no runs, three hits and committed three errors.
Tech will take the next three days off, before heading to Clearwater, Fla., for the USF adidas Invitational, March 8-11.
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