Kate Pouliot Pitches First Career No-Hitter To Lead Gamecocks Over Bucknell, 8-0

March 2, 2008

COLUMBIA, S.C. – Senior pitcher Kate Pouliot tossed the 43rd no-hitter in school history and the first of her career in South Carolina’s 8-0 blanking of Bucknell in five innings to close out the 2008 Carolina Classic at Beckham Field. The Gamecocks claim the tourney crown, going 4-0 on the weekend, to move their record to 11-8. Bucknell falls to 2-7.

Pouliot got some help from her offense, as eight Gamecock starters and three reserves got hits in the game. Freshman catcher Cassie Gogreve and junior first baseman Jacqueline Wetherbee both had two hits and two RBI in the game, while senior Whitney Wierzbicki and freshman Jill Semento also collected a pair of hits.

Carolina put five runs on the board in the first. Junior Ashton Payne led off the inning with a double, extending her hitting streak to 14 games, and moved to third on a passed ball, Semento brought her home on a single to center. After a fielder’s choice by senior Jessica Josker took Semento off the bases, Cagney Davis sent one to the fence that Bison centerfielder Ashley Beans dropped, which allowed Josker to score. P.J. Fulmer singled up the middle to move Davis to third before Wetherbee cracked a double to right center, scorring both Fulmer and Davis. Lindsay Walker followed with another single to plate Wetherbee and give Carolina the 5-0 advantage.

The Gamecocks got three on in the third, but were unable to score, but they made up for it in the fourth. A two-out single from Gogreve sent Wierzbicki and Josker home, giving Carolina a 7-0 lead.

In the fifth, Carolina loaded the bases ahead of Josker, who singled home Chrissy Schoonmaker to close out the win for the Garnet and Black. Schoonmaker got her first double of the season with one down in the inning.

Pouliot (3-1) only walked one while striking out seven in the no-no. It’s the first for the Gamecocks since March 4, 2007, when Melissa Hendon threw a perfect game against Pittsburgh. It’s also the third consecutive shutout by the Gamecock pitching staff. Haskins (0-1) got the loss, surrendering five hits and five unearned runs in just 0.2 innings pitched.

The Gamecocks head to Chapel Hill to face nationally-ranked North Carolina on Tuesday, March 4, before returning home to open SEC play on Saturday, March 8 with a three-game series against surprising Arkansas. Action on both Saturday and Sunday begins at 1 p.m. at Beckham Field.