May 20, 2007
Columbia, S.C. – The hero for South Carolina all weekend long put a fitting cap on the Gamecocks’ NCAA Regional championship as Jessica Josker hit a game-winning walk-off single to lift South Carolina to a come-from-behind 4-3 win over No. 20 Oregon Sunday in the championship game of the Columbia Regional played at Beckham Field. With the win, the Gamecocks advance to their first NCAA Super Regional.
South Carolina trailed 3-0 heading into the bottom of the sixth inning but Lindsay Walker singled in Adele Voigt with two outs to bring the score to 3-1. Ashton Payne followed that up with a two-run triple to tie the game at three. Oregon got out of the inning, but Carolina kept things going in the decisive seventh inning. The Gamecocks got runners on second and third with two outs when Oregon elected to intentionally walk McKenna Hughes to load the bases for Josker, who responded with her game-winning single.
Melissa Hendon (20-17) picked up her 20 win of the season, becoming the first Gamecock pitcher to reach 20 wins in a season since 2002. Hendon went 3-1 with a save in five appearances for the tournament. In 29.1 innings pitched, she struck out 25 and threw four complete games. Melissa Rice took the loss for the Ducks and fell to 21-14.
“Melissa Hendon did a heck of a job both games. We started out the season saying we don’t want pitchers to have to win the game for us,” said head coach Joyce Compton. “We just want them to keep us in the ballgame. This team picked a great weekend to start hitting. This team always felt they could win the whole weekend, and that is how we came out. Early in the second game we did all we could to let them win it, but we eventually got the stops.
The excitement of the game came in the seventh inning when Tori Martin, who was pinch running for Jacqueline Wetherbee, attempted to come home on a double by Lisa Longo for the winning run, but Martin tripped as she rounded third and had to scurry back safely. For the third straight game, the Gamecocks had runners on base and the opposing team opted to intentionally walk Hughes to load the bases and take a chance on Josker. Josker, who was 7-for-17 with three runs, two doubles and four RBI before the at-bat, singled to left centerfield on a 2-1 count to score Martin for her fifth RBI of the tournament and the thrilling victory. Josker went 3-for-4 in the game and hit .444 (8-for-18) for the tournament with three runs and five RBI.
The game marked the final home game for senior McKenna Hughes, who played a vital role in the tournament. Hughes led the team for the weekend as she went 5-for-11 to hit .455, including a home run and a double and she scored four runs.
“Every senior and person wants to end their season with a win on their home field,” said Hughes. “We finished with Ole Miss and none of us ever thought we would get a regional at that point, but we finished with another win today. Just to walk out with a win on my final senior home game is nice.”
The Gamecocks, who improve to 38-24, will play the No. 2 national seed Northwestern Wildcats in Evanston, Ill. May 25-26. Northwestern defeated Illinois State 4-1 Sunday to advance to the Super Regional. Oregon ended its season with a 44-19 record.
