May 2, 2009
COLUMBIA, S.C. – A wild finish in both halves of the 10th saw Kentucky take a 4-3 victory over South Carolina in the first game of the doubleheader on Saturday afternoon at Beckham Field.
Kentucky (30-19, 12-13 SEC) broke through in the 10th with two runs on a crazy play. Molly Johnson got a one-out double, but stayed there on a line out to center. With two down, Megan Yocke singled back through the middle. The throw home was wild, allowing Johnson to score and Yocke to get to third. While trying to get Yocke at third, the throw got away again, giving Yocke the opening to score.
South Carolina (20-23, 5-20 SEC) did not go down quietly in their final at bat. Sophomore Jill Semento started the inning with a single and moved to third on two groundouts. Junior Lindsay Walker drew a free pass to make it first and third with two outs. Freshman Kaitlin Westfall hit a grounder to short, but the throw was wild trying to get the force at second, allowing Semento to score. With the tying run at second, Kentucky starter Rachel Riley (5-5) got one more groundout to end the game.
In the fourth, Kentucky scored its first run when Natalie Smith singled home Meagan Aull, who singled to right with one down, stole second and moved to third on Brittany Cervantes’s fly to center.
The Gamecocks threatened in the bottom of the frame when Semento drew a one-out walk before moving to third on an errant throw by the Kentucky shortstop, which put freshman Evan Childs on second. But Riley got a strikeout and a grounder right back to her to snub out the rally.
The Wildcats struck again with two outs in the fifth when Aull doubled home Destinee Mordecai after she reached on a walk.
South Carolina forced extra innings with two runs in the seventh. Freshman Lauren Lackey started the rally with a one-out hit, and sophomore Laura Mendes followed with her third hit of the day. The runners advanced on a slow roller to short, getting Riley to the brink of ending the game. Freshman Kristen Stubblefield stepped up and hit a slow grounder to second. While Stubblefield beat out the play, the second baseman threw the ball away, allowing both Lackey and Mendes to score to tie the game. The Wildcats got Stubblefield trying to advance to second to end the frame.
The Garnet and Black nearly won the game in the eighth. Childs, who reached on a fielder’s choice and moved to second on a groundout, was waved home on Walker’s hit through the right side. The throw home from Mordecai from right was good enough to catch Childs, however, sending the game to the ninth.
Another chance escaped the Gamecocks in the ninth. Westfall led off with a double and moved to third on Lackey’s sacrifice bunt. Kentucky chose to intentionally walk Mendes, and the move paid off. A pair of groundouts, first to short then back to the circle, got Riley out of the jam.
Riley got the complete-game win, giving up three runs, one earned, on nine hits and four walks. She struck out three. Freshman Kierstyn White (9-3) got the loss, allowing two runs, one earned, on four hits in 2.2 innings. Mendes reached base four times, going 3-for-4 with a run scored. Semento got on base three times, going 2-for-4 at the plate while also scoring a run.
