April 26, 2009
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - The Boilermaker softball team finished off a conference sweep of Penn State with a 3-2 win on Sunday with help from a seventh-inning home run. Purdue used a seven-hit effort en route to the win, while limiting the Nittany Lions to just two hits.
Junior Liane Horiuchi led the Purdue bats with a 2-for-2 effort, while five other batters posted hits.
Sophomore Suzie Rzegocki struck out two in the complete-game victory, which moved her to 21-10 on the year. Jackie Hill dropped to 12-9 with the complete-game effort for PSU.
Horiuchi reached on a bunt single to start the game, but was called for leaving early for the game's first out. A ground out and caught foul ball followed.
A hit batsman and a walk put junior Jenna Alexander and sophomore Beth Cinadr on board in the second, but a strikeout left both stranded.
A hit by pitch and ground out gave PSU a runner in scoring position in the bottom of the inning, but the Purdue defense held.
The Boilermakers eeked out an uncoventional run in the third to go up 1-0. Horiuchi was hit by a pitch and sacrifice over to second before moving to third on a wild pitch. Senior Katie Mitchell drew a two-out walk and continued on to steal second on the play. The Nittany Lions threw to third to hold Horiuchi, but the throw sailed wide allowing her to score instead, while also pushing Mitchell to third. A strikeout left Mitchell on base at inning's end.
A walk, a wild pitch and a sacrifice put pinch runner Carnie Smith on third for the Nittany Lions, but the Boilermakers doubled her off as Horiucihi caught a fly ball in short center field and fired home where Alexander applied a perfect tag.
Junior Ashley Barr looped a single into short left field with one out in the fourth and was sacrificed over to second, but a strikeout kept Purdue from capitalizing on the scoring opportunity.
Penn State scored its first run of the weekend in the fourth. A fielder's choice and two wild pitches put Sam Hovanec on third with one out. Kayce Zielenski supplied the RBI with a single up the middle. A walk pushed Zielenski to second, but a liner to the third baseman prevented PSU from taking the lead.
Purdue got the run back in the fifth combining a pair of hits and a sacrifice for the score. Senior Kelly Miller led off with a single up the middle and was sacrificed to second. Freshman Molly Garst brought her home with a single up the middle. Garst went to second on throw home and advanced to third on a ground out. Alexander was hit by a pitch to give the Boilermakers runners at the corners, but a grounder to the pitcher stranded both.
The Nittany Lions tied it up at 2-2 in the bottom of the fifth as Hovanec singled through the right side with runners at first and second after a pair of two-out walks.
Cinadr added a one-out single to right in the sixth and stole second, but was unable to score due to a pop up and fly out.
Horiuchi put Purdue back on top with one swing of the bat as she sent the first pitch of the seventh inning towering over the left field wall for her fourth home run of the season. Alexander sent a two-out single into right center, but a strikeout kept the Boilermakers from adding to their 3-2 advantage.
The Nittany Lions went down in order in the seventh to clinch the Purdue win.
The Boilermakers (26-17, 9-7 Big Ten) return to action at 3 p.m. Wednesday when they take on Illinois in a doubleheader.