Feb. 14, 2010
CLEARWATER, Fla. – Freshman Hope Rush had a no-hitter for 6.2 innings and ended up with a two-hit shutout as the No. 13/14 Georgia Tech Softball team (3-0) shut out East Carolina (1-2), 3-0, Sunday Morning at the USF Wilson-DeMarini Tournament. Redshirt senior Jen Yee went 2-for-2 with a home run, double, two RBI and a walk while junior Kristen Adkins also went deep for the Yellow Jackets. Tech will close out the tournament at 1:30 this afternoon against Florida Gulf Coast.
A clean single to right field by ECU clean-up hitter Marina Gusman-Brown on a 3-1 pitch broke up Rush’s bid for a no-no with two outs in the final frame, just hours after she shut out No. 3 Florida. The next batter, Sissy Jimenez, dumped a single into shallow right field but Gusman-Brown was gunned down at third base by Jessica Sinclair to end the game. Rush settled for a two-hit shutout as she walked one and struck out six batters. Rush (2-0) threw just 76 pitches and had only five two-ball counts and three, three-ball counts in the game.
The Yellow Jackets got on the board in the first inning when redshirt senior Jen Yee took a 3-2 pitch from 2009 Conference USA Pitcher of the Year Toni Paisley over the fence in right field for her second home run of the season. Yee then struck again in the third inning. With sophomore Kate Kuzma aboard with two outs after singling earlier in the inning, Yee drove her home with a double to the gap in left-center giving the Yellow Jackets a 2-0 lead heading to the bottom of the third.
Junior Kristen Adkins gave the Yellow Jackets a 3-0 lead with a solo home run to left-center field in the top of the fourth inning. It was her first home run of the season and the sixth for Tech in 13-plus innings of the weekend.
That would be more than enough offense for Rush who was on cruise control all game. Paisley (1-1) was charged with three earned runs on five hits. She walked three and struck out 10.
After facing Florida Gulf Coast in the finale of the USF Wilson-DeMarini Tournament at 1:30 p.m. this afternoon, the Yellow Jackets will head out west for the Louisville Slugger Desert Classic, Feb. 19-21, in Las Vegas, Nev. While in Vegas, Georgia Tech will face Northwestern, BYU, Hawaii, Long Beach State and California. Live stats and audio will be available for every game in Las Vegas at www.RamblinWreck.com.
