March 22, 2003
Lipscomb Box Score
Radford Box Score
Maryland Box Score
MARIETTA, Ga. – Sophomore Jessica Sallinger equaled her own school record with 17 strikeouts, and junior shortstop Tara Knudsen drove in the game-winning run as the Georgia Tech softball team (22-12) defeated Maryland (7-8), 1-0 in nine innings, Saturday at the Buzz Classic at the Al Bishop Softball Complex. The Jackets went 3-0 on day one of the tournament, also defeating Lipscomb, 3-2, and Radford, 5-3.
Atlantic Coast Conference foes No. 17 Florida State and North Carolina each joined the Jackets with 3-0 marks Saturday.
Against the Terps, Sallinger (12-8) was dominant from the start, allowing just two hits and zero walks in the nine innings pitched. She fanned 17 batters for the second time this season and now owns eight double-digit strikeout games this season. Sallinger also has posted six shutouts and tossed 15 complete games in 16 starts. The victory was the 40th of her career, ranking third on the Jackets’ all-time list.
With the game still scoreless in the ninth, Knudsen singled to left center to score second baseman Felicia Coursey, who was placed at second due to the international tiebreaker rule, and give Tech the 1-0 victory.
Sallinger struck out the side in the first and never looked back. She kept the Terps off the bases until a third inning double to center fielder Samantha Sweeney, who advanced to third on a sacrifice bunt. But Sallinger fanned Malissa Moczulski and Crystal Rizzuto, Maryland’s No. 3 and No. 4 batters, to get out of the inning. Sweeney also singled in the sixth for the Terps only hits of the day.
Maryland’s Jessica Aditays was every bit as impressive as Sallinger, holding Tech hitless a seventh inning infield single by first baseman Katie Donovan. Aditays, who falls to 4-3 with the loss, went eight innings and allowed just one run on two hits and four walks. She struck out eight.
In the day’s first two games, Tech used the long ball to post a pair of victories. The Jackets totaled four homers, including a season-high three versus Radford. Junior Soraya Reddick had two round-trippers against the Highlanders.
Against Lipscomb, Knudsen put the Jackets on the board in the bottom of the first with a solo shot to left field, her team-best sixth home run of the season. Tech added runs in both the second and third innings, highlighted by a run-scoring sacrifice fly in the third by sophomore first baseman Katie Donovan. Donovan also figured in the scoring in the second, as she scored from third on a passed ball.
Tech starter Tiffany Goodman (2-1) tossed a solid seven innings to earn her second win of the season. She allowed just four hits and two runs, while fanning three. Goodman also walked three batters. At the plate, Knudsen and left fielder Kirin Kumar, each went 2-for-3 to lead the Jackets.
Lipscomb was led by catcher Ashley Denton, who was 2-for-4, and first baseman Jennifer Canton, who homered in the sixth off Goodman. Lady Bison starter Carissa Lowery took the loss after allowing three runs on six hits and two walks in six innings.
Tech also jumped out 1-0 against Radford via a solo homer, this one from Reddick in the top of the second. The shot to left field off Highlander starter Jennifer Bosley was Reddick’s second of the season.
However, the lead would not last long, as Radford plated three runs on five hits in the bottom of the third inning to take a 3-1 advantage.
The Jackets reclaimed the lead in the top of the fifth on a three-run home run from senior Lindsay Wood. The opposite field homer to right scored both Kumar, who led off the inning with a single and Knudsen, who walked. Wood now has five home runs and a team-high 20 runs batted in.
Reddick struck again in the sixth with her second solo shot to left, increasing the Tech lead to 5-3 and chasing Bosley from the game. Bosley took the loss after allowing five runs on seven hits in five innings. Tech also homered three times off her, a single-game first for the Jackets this season.
Tech starter Erin Voeltz improved to 7-3 with the victory. She allowed three runs on six hits and two walks, while striking out five. Other than the five-hit third frame, Voeltz only gave up one other safety on the day.
At the plate, Reddick went 2-for-3 with the two homers, two runs scored and two RBI to pace Tech.
The round-robin event resumes Sunday at 11 a.m., with the Jackets squaring off against Troy State for the third time this season. Tech swept a doubleheader from the Lady Trojans on February 25 at Glenn Field. Due to the late start to the tournament, bracket play will not be contested.
SATURDAY'S RESULTSRadford 7, Lipscomb 5Georgia State 5, Middle Tennessee State 3Boston University 5, Nicholls State 1 (10 inn.)Harvard 5, Charleston Southern 2Florida State 5, Princeton 1Georgia Tech 3, Lipscomb 2Nicholls State 4, Georgia State 0Maryland 2, Western Kentucky 1Charleston Southern 13, Campbell 2 (5 inn.)North Carolina 10, Harvard 3Tennessee Tech 6, Mercer 2Troy State 6, Radford 3MTSU 5, Princeton 4Florida State 2, Boston University 1 (9 inn.)Western Kentucky 11, Lipscomb 3Campbell 7, Harvard 2Nicholls State 5, Princeton 2North Carolina 6, Tennessee Tech 1Georgia Tech 5, Radford 3Georgia Tech 1, Maryland 0 (9 inn.)Georgia State 6, Boston University 0Mercer 4, Charleston Southern 0Florida State 5, Middle Tennessee State 0Troy State 11, Western Kentucky 9North Carolina 3, Mercer 1Tennessee Tech 1, Campbell 0 (8 inn.)Maryland 8, Troy State 5
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