April 20, 2002
COLUMBUS, Ohio - The Purdue softball team fell on Saturday to the Ohio State Buckeyes, 6-5, at Buckeye Field, as the Scarlet and Grey rallied from a four-run deficit on their 2002 Senior Day. The Boilermakers fall to 31-10 (2-8 Big Ten), while the Buckeyes improve to 42-9 (11-3 Big Ten).
"Today's game was a very well-played game by both teams," said Purdue head coach Carol Bruggeman. "We played with passion, enthusiasm, and we jumped out to a good lead. Ohio State proved why they're ranked 22nd in the country and they fought back hard. It was just a really well-played game and it's too bad we had to lose."
After a slow start in the first, the Boilermakers started out extremely strong in the second inning, scoring their first run for the 1-0 lead over the Buckeyes. Purdue scored on a single by junior designated player Laura Martin, when junior center fielder Andrea Roush scored from second after she reached on her own single through the left side and was sacrificed to second by junior catcher Jesse Jones.
The Boilermakers held the Buckeyes in the top of the third inning again and returned to the plate to add two more runs for a 3-0 lead. Purdue's first runner of the inning was freshman second baseman Andrea Hillsey, but she would be taken out at third base after junior first baseman Heidi Foster hit a single to put Hillsey at second and Roush reached on a fielder's choice. Then, Jones hit a two RBI triple to right center field that bounced off the wall, just short of another home run, and scored both Foster and Roush.
The Buckeyes rebounded in the top of the fourth to cut the Boilermakers' lead to 3-1, off a leadoff double and a subsequent single that score the runner at second.
Purdue did not answer the Ohio State run in the top of the fourth, but did tally two more of its own in the bottom of the fifth inning, when junior left fielder Angi Roembke reached first and then advanced to second on an errored throw by the OSU pitcher, advanced to third on a single by Hillsey and then went home on a double by Foster that put Hillsey on third base. Hillsey then crossed the plate when Roush completed a suicide squeeze play successfully for the out at first, but the run across the plate, increasing the Purdue lead to 5-1.
The Buckeyes rallied in the top of the sixth inning, however, with a total of five runs that came on six hits. Ohio State began the inning with three consecutive singles to load the bases, followed by another single through the left side to score the runner at third and keep the bases loaded. Then a force-out at home kept the Buckeye run from scoring, but kept the bases loaded one more time, as the batter reached on a fielder's choice.
A single up the middle scored one more before a three RBI triple cleared the bases, except for the batter at third. She would then cause the third out after a sacrifice fly attempt in left field wasn't deep enough to take off and Roembke shot-gunned it to Jones at home for the double play on the fly ball and the tag on the runner. But, the Buckeyes had tallied enough runs to go up, 6-5 on the Boilermakers and that was enough to call it a day and a win for the Buckeyes.
After a ground out from Purdue's lead-off batter in the bottom of the sixth, the Boilermakers loaded the bases after a hit by a pitch for sophomore right fielder Angela Knight, a single up the middle from Crabtree and a bunt single from Roembke. But the Buckeyes came back with an incredible double play as they took the fielder's choice out at home for the run, but also threw down to first for the third out of the inning.
In the top of the seventh, the Boilermakers held the Bucks at 6-5, but were unable to put any runs of their own on the board.
On the mound, senior Meagan Dooley made the start and recorded a no-decision with her 5.0 innings pitched. She gave up nine hits, five runs and three walks. Junior Leighann Burke came in on relief and took the loss, dropping her record to 13-9. Burke allowed two hits, one run and one walk, facing 10 batters.
The Old Gold and Black will return to the field on Sunday, when they travel to University Park, Pa., for a twinbill with the Penn State Nittany Lions. Game time is set for noon EDT.
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