University of Houston
18-12, 2-4
Memphis
18-7, 3-3
Houston Drops Series Finale to Memphis, 2-0
3/20/2011 12:00:00 AM | Softball
March 20, 2011
Boxscore | Boxscore (PDF)| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | F | H | E | |
| HOUSTON | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| MEMPHIS | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | X | 2 | 2 | 0 |
| Pitching | IP | ER | K/BB | H |
| Amanda Crabtree (L, 11-6) | 4.0 | 0 | 3/2 | 1 |
| Donna Bourgeois | 2.0 | 0 | 3/0 | 1 |
="">
| Batting | H | AB | R | RBI | BB |
| Brooke Lathan | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
After putting on an offensive display to win both games handily on Saturday, the Cougars and Tigers were locked in a pitchers' dual on Sunday, tallying just three total hits between the two teams.
Senior Amanda Crabtree (11-6) gave up an infield hit in the first inning and wouldn't surrender another as she struck out three and walked two. The final walk resulted in the go-ahead run that handed her the loss after four-plus innings of work.
Sophomore shortstop Brooke Lathan busted up Tiger starter Carly Hummel's (10-3) no-hit bid in the top of the seventh to lead the offense, going 1-for-2 with a walk.
A hot shot back to the mound by third baseman Maddie McKinley grazed Crabtree and accounted for the Tigers' first hit of the game. Getting in the groove, Crabtree didn't allow another hit for the rest of her outing.
As most quality pitching duals do, the defense got involved on Sunday. In the bottom of the fourth, redshirt junior second baseman Jennifer Klinkert robbed a base hit when she got on the ground behind first to stop a hard hit grounder. In the following at bat, senior right fielder Katy Beth Sherman tracked down a high fly ball through the wind to keep the shutout in tact.
In the opposing dugout, Hummel kept the Cougar hitters quiet, as well. Through the first six innings, the Cougar lineup had yet to record a hit. Freshman first baseman Stesha Brazil drew a walk in the top of the fifth to break up Hummel's 11-consecutive outs, but was unable to come around to score, sending the game into the bottom of the fifth locked at zero.
A leadoff walk to second baseman Alyssa Palmieri ended Crabtree's outing in the bottom of the fifth, and senior righty Donna Bourgeois stepped in.
The defense that had been invincible for the majority of the game waivered in the bottom of the fifth. A sac bunt provided out number one against the first batter Bourgeois faced, but the next Tiger, Kamri Chester, reached on an error. The first run of the game quickly followed after Bourgeois struck out catcher Nikki Moreno, but the wild pitch on the strikeout combined with an errant throw gave Palmieri room to score.
The Tigers' second hit of the game, another infield single, brought Chester home to give Memphis the 2-0 lead that would stand up for the remainder of the game.
Bourgeois allowed just one hit and no walks, while striking out three in her two innings in the circle. She and Crabtree were each charged with a run on Sunday, although neither of them were earned.
Houston will continue its March on the road on Wednesday, when the Cougars head to San Marcos to face Texas State.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Hummel, Carly (10-3)
L: Crabtree, Amanda (11-6)
Batting:
SH: Outon, Haley 1
Base Running:
SB: Anderson, Holly 1
HBP: Anderson, Holly 1
Batting:
RBI: Mott, Heather 1
SH: King, Ashleigh 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Palmieri, Alyssa 1 ; Chester, Kamri 1
HBP: Kassner, Kailey 2
