Thursday, March 8
Boca Raton, Fla.
1:00 PM EST
Pitt
12-7-1
6
vs
1
Ball State
12-7
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
R
H
E
Pitt
2
0
0
3
0
1
0
6
11
1
Ball State
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
1
3
1
Photo by: Alex Mowrey/Pitt Athletics
Long Ball Fuels Pitt Past Ball State, 6-1
3/8/2018 4:50:00 PM | Softball
Panthers Blast Four Home Runs En Route to Win
BOCA RATON, Fla. – The University of Pittsburgh softball team blasted four home runs en route to a 6-1 victory over Ball State in the Panthers first game of the Parents' Weekend Tournament hosted by FAU at FAU Softball Stadium.
Pitt [12-7-1] dominated the Cardinals [12-7] at the plate, recording six runs on 11 hits and five RBIs. The Panthers saw four long balls in the game as juniors Gabrielle Fredericks and Olivia Gray, along with seniors McKayla Taylor and Giorgiana Zeremenko all went yard. Fredericks sent one out in her first at-bat in the opening inning, while Taylor, Zeremenko and Gray posted theirs in the fourth, with Taylor and Zeremenko going back-to-back.
Fredericks went 3-for-3 on the day with two doubles in addition to the home run. She also walked once to reach base in all four of her plate appearances. Gray, along with junior Alexis Solak, each recorded two hits apiece.
Junior pitcher Sarah Dawson, who started today's contest in the circle, was phenomenal in the outing as she gave up just one hit in 22 batters faced, while striking out two. Dawson was relieved by junior Taylor Rahach in the sixth inning but struggled, giving up one run on two hits. Before recording an out, Rahach was pulled from the circle. Dawson returned to close out the game.
Scoring Summary: Pitt 6, Ball State 1
The Panthers started strong in the opening inning of play, as a two-run homer by Fredericks gave Pitt a 2-0 lead. She brought in Solak, who recorded Pitt's first single of the game.
After two scoreless innings, the Panthers added three more runs to their total thanks to three solo shots in the frame. Gray hit a leadoff long ball to start the inning, while Taylor and Zeremenko went back-to-back with two away.
In the top of the sixth, Pitt extended its lead to 6-0 on an error by Ball State. With Solak on second and Fredericks on first after a hit and a walk, respectively, freshman Hunter Levesque hit a ball to third base. The throw was high over the head of the Cardinals first baseman, allowing Solak to score on the play.
Ball State recorded their lone run in the sixth inning after Rahach replaced Dawson in the circle. Rahach gave up a leadoff single and walked the second batter of the inning to put runners on for the Cardinals. A blooper to short right field by Ball State brought home a single run. Rahach loaded the bases shortly thereafter, but Dawson returned to the circle to close out the rest of the sixth frame and the bottom of the seventh.
Up Next
Pitt continues play at 6 p.m. Thursday, March 8 with a contest against host FIU.
#H2P | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook
Pitt [12-7-1] dominated the Cardinals [12-7] at the plate, recording six runs on 11 hits and five RBIs. The Panthers saw four long balls in the game as juniors Gabrielle Fredericks and Olivia Gray, along with seniors McKayla Taylor and Giorgiana Zeremenko all went yard. Fredericks sent one out in her first at-bat in the opening inning, while Taylor, Zeremenko and Gray posted theirs in the fourth, with Taylor and Zeremenko going back-to-back.
Fredericks went 3-for-3 on the day with two doubles in addition to the home run. She also walked once to reach base in all four of her plate appearances. Gray, along with junior Alexis Solak, each recorded two hits apiece.
Junior pitcher Sarah Dawson, who started today's contest in the circle, was phenomenal in the outing as she gave up just one hit in 22 batters faced, while striking out two. Dawson was relieved by junior Taylor Rahach in the sixth inning but struggled, giving up one run on two hits. Before recording an out, Rahach was pulled from the circle. Dawson returned to close out the game.
Scoring Summary: Pitt 6, Ball State 1
The Panthers started strong in the opening inning of play, as a two-run homer by Fredericks gave Pitt a 2-0 lead. She brought in Solak, who recorded Pitt's first single of the game.
After two scoreless innings, the Panthers added three more runs to their total thanks to three solo shots in the frame. Gray hit a leadoff long ball to start the inning, while Taylor and Zeremenko went back-to-back with two away.
In the top of the sixth, Pitt extended its lead to 6-0 on an error by Ball State. With Solak on second and Fredericks on first after a hit and a walk, respectively, freshman Hunter Levesque hit a ball to third base. The throw was high over the head of the Cardinals first baseman, allowing Solak to score on the play.
Ball State recorded their lone run in the sixth inning after Rahach replaced Dawson in the circle. Rahach gave up a leadoff single and walked the second batter of the inning to put runners on for the Cardinals. A blooper to short right field by Ball State brought home a single run. Rahach loaded the bases shortly thereafter, but Dawson returned to the circle to close out the rest of the sixth frame and the bottom of the seventh.
Up Next
Pitt continues play at 6 p.m. Thursday, March 8 with a contest against host FIU.
#H2P | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Dawson, Sarah (8-4)
L: WILMES (5-3)
Batting:
2B: Fredericks, Gabrielle 2 ; Myers, Taylor 1
HR: Taylor, McKayla 1 ; Zeremenko, Giorgiana 1 ; Fredericks, Gabrielle 1 ; Gray, Olivia 1
RBI: Taylor, McKayla 1 ; Zeremenko, Giorgiana 1 ; Fredericks, Gabrielle 2 ; Gray, Olivia 1
SH: Levesque, Hunter 1 ; Gray, Olivia 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Taylor, McKayla 1 ; Zeremenko, Giorgiana 1 ; Solak, Alexis 2 ; Fredericks, Gabrielle 1 ; Gray, Olivia 1
SB: Kruger, Kaitlyn 1 ; Myers, Taylor 1
HBP: Taylor, McKayla 1 ; McGaffic, Connor 1
Batting:
RBI: DEMNIANIUK 1
Base Running:
RUNS: JANIGA 1
SB: JANIGA 1
Game Leaders
Hitting
AB
3
R
1
H
3
RBI
2
AB
3
R
2
H
2
RBI
0
AB
3
R
1
H
2
RBI
1
AB
4
R
1
H
1
RBI
1
Players Mentioned
P
/ SoftballINF/C
/ SoftballINF
/ Softball
OF/INF
/ Softball
P
/ SoftballINF
/ SoftballINF
/ Softball
C/INF
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