University of Pittsburgh Athletics
Sunday, February 26
Troy, Ala.
11:00 AM
Pitt
12-2
5
vs
0
Southeastern Louisiana
7-6
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | Runs R | Hits H | Errors E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pitt | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 0 |
| Southeastern La. | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
Harris Tosses Perfect Game En Route to 5-0 Win
2/26/2017 12:00:00 AM | Softball
Feb. 26, 2017
TROY, Ala. - Junior pitcher Kayla Harris tossed a perfect game for the 19th-ranked Pitt softball team, as the Panthers defeated Southeastern Louisiana 5-0 Sunday, Feb. 26 in the team's final game of the Troy Classic in Troy, Alabama.
"Today was so exciting," said head coach Holly Aprile. "A perfect game is such a hard thing to achieve. A no-hitter is hard, but to have a perfect game is a real accomplishment."
Harris' performance comes just a year after pitcher Sarah Dawson threw Pitt's first perfect game in program history. Dawson, a freshman in 2016, threw a five-inning, 15 out game in a 13-0 win over Providence Feb. 27, 2016.
"It's an amazing feeling," said Harris. "I wasn't paying attention to it the entire game. I was just focused on getting three outs every inning and putting my team in a successful position to win. After the final out, everyone was yelling at me that I threw a perfect game and that is when I realized it. I was pretty excited."
Harris [6-1] retired 21 straight batters with the help of her defense, while striking out four. The four strikeouts came at the beginning of the game as the Chesapeake, Va., native struck out the side in the first inning and mowed down the first batter of the second.
Following that, the Panthers' defense was perfect from start to finish. Sophomore third baseman Olivia Gray finished with seven assists, while shortstop McKayla Taylor had four.
"My team always has my back and today they were amazing," said Harris. "Every game I'm out there I'm so confident with each one of them behind me. I am proud of them and ecstatic that they were able to help me accomplish my first perfect game."
"Kayla has done a great job the entire season so far and was particularly sharp today," said Aprile. "We played great defense behind her too."
It was a battle at the plate for Pitt, who recorded a single hit in the first inning and did not tally another until the sixth. The Panthers' bats sealed the deal in the seventh as the team scored four insurance runs on three hits.
Freshman Hannah Edwards put together two of Pitt's hits, while sophomore Alexis Solak and juniors McKayla Taylor and Giorgiana Zeremenko, each had one. Solak and Zeremenko each had two RBIs.
HOW IT HAPPENED
In the opening inning, Pitt took a 1-0 lead after loading the bases and scoring on a passed ball. Edwards got things going with a single to third, and was joined by Gray and Taylor on base after Southeastern's starting pitcher issued back-to-back walks.
A new pitcher entered for the Lions after their starter loaded the bases, but a passed ball on the new hurler's first pitch allowed Edwards to cross home plate.
The bottom of the first inning saw Harris' dominance start to kick in as she struck out the side. In the opening of the second, she struck out her fourth straight. From there Harris let her defense do handle the work for the remainder of the game.
Pitt added four insurance runs in the top of the seventh to give Harris a 5-0 cushion heading into the bottom half of the seventh.
Junior Erin Hershman led off the inning with a walk and immediately moved to second on an Edwards single. A walk to Gray loaded the bases for Taylor who singled to right to score two.
With two away and runners on second and third, Solak ended the inning with a double down the left field line scoring both Gray and Taylor.
Harris returned to the mound in the bottom half of the seventh to retire the Lions in order and cap off the perfect game.
UP NEXT
Pitt win begin ACC play as the Panthers head to Chapel Hill, N.C., to take on UNC March 3-5.
#H2P | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook
TROY, Ala. - Junior pitcher Kayla Harris tossed a perfect game for the 19th-ranked Pitt softball team, as the Panthers defeated Southeastern Louisiana 5-0 Sunday, Feb. 26 in the team's final game of the Troy Classic in Troy, Alabama.
"Today was so exciting," said head coach Holly Aprile. "A perfect game is such a hard thing to achieve. A no-hitter is hard, but to have a perfect game is a real accomplishment."
Harris' performance comes just a year after pitcher Sarah Dawson threw Pitt's first perfect game in program history. Dawson, a freshman in 2016, threw a five-inning, 15 out game in a 13-0 win over Providence Feb. 27, 2016.
"It's an amazing feeling," said Harris. "I wasn't paying attention to it the entire game. I was just focused on getting three outs every inning and putting my team in a successful position to win. After the final out, everyone was yelling at me that I threw a perfect game and that is when I realized it. I was pretty excited."
Harris [6-1] retired 21 straight batters with the help of her defense, while striking out four. The four strikeouts came at the beginning of the game as the Chesapeake, Va., native struck out the side in the first inning and mowed down the first batter of the second.
Following that, the Panthers' defense was perfect from start to finish. Sophomore third baseman Olivia Gray finished with seven assists, while shortstop McKayla Taylor had four.
"My team always has my back and today they were amazing," said Harris. "Every game I'm out there I'm so confident with each one of them behind me. I am proud of them and ecstatic that they were able to help me accomplish my first perfect game."
"Kayla has done a great job the entire season so far and was particularly sharp today," said Aprile. "We played great defense behind her too."
It was a battle at the plate for Pitt, who recorded a single hit in the first inning and did not tally another until the sixth. The Panthers' bats sealed the deal in the seventh as the team scored four insurance runs on three hits.
Freshman Hannah Edwards put together two of Pitt's hits, while sophomore Alexis Solak and juniors McKayla Taylor and Giorgiana Zeremenko, each had one. Solak and Zeremenko each had two RBIs.
HOW IT HAPPENED
In the opening inning, Pitt took a 1-0 lead after loading the bases and scoring on a passed ball. Edwards got things going with a single to third, and was joined by Gray and Taylor on base after Southeastern's starting pitcher issued back-to-back walks.
A new pitcher entered for the Lions after their starter loaded the bases, but a passed ball on the new hurler's first pitch allowed Edwards to cross home plate.
The bottom of the first inning saw Harris' dominance start to kick in as she struck out the side. In the opening of the second, she struck out her fourth straight. From there Harris let her defense do handle the work for the remainder of the game.
Pitt added four insurance runs in the top of the seventh to give Harris a 5-0 cushion heading into the bottom half of the seventh.
Junior Erin Hershman led off the inning with a walk and immediately moved to second on an Edwards single. A walk to Gray loaded the bases for Taylor who singled to right to score two.
With two away and runners on second and third, Solak ended the inning with a double down the left field line scoring both Gray and Taylor.
Harris returned to the mound in the bottom half of the seventh to retire the Lions in order and cap off the perfect game.
UP NEXT
Pitt win begin ACC play as the Panthers head to Chapel Hill, N.C., to take on UNC March 3-5.
#H2P | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Harris, Kayla (6-1)
L: VanHemelryck (0-2)
Batting:
2B: Solak, Alexis 1
RBI: Taylor, McKayla 2 ; Solak, Alexis 2
SH: Solak, Alexis 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Edwards, Hannah 2 ; Gray, Olivia 1 ; Taylor, McKayla 1 ; Hershman, Erin 1
SB: Edwards, Hannah 1 ; Hershman, Erin 2
Game Leaders
AB
4
R
2
H
2
RBI
0
AB
3
R
1
H
1
RBI
2
AB
3
R
0
H
1
RBI
0
AB
3
R
0
H
1
RBI
2
Players Mentioned
P
/ SoftballOF
/ Softball
INF
/ Softball
P
/ Softball
OF
/ Softball
INF
/ Softball
INF
/ Softball
C/INF
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