Tuesday, March 19
Pittsburgh, Pa.
4 PM
Pitt
4-22
9
vs
11
Ohio
18-10
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6
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8
9
10
R
H
E
Ohio
2
0
1
0
0
0
6
0
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2
11
14
1
Pitt
0
0
2
0
2
0
5
0
0
0
9
11
2
Photo by: Matt Hawley/Pitt Athletics
Pitt Drops Home Opener to Ohio in High Scoring Affair
3/19/2019 9:49:00 PM | Softball
Panthers and Bobcats Combine for Eight Home Runs in Extra-Innings Battle
PITTSBURGH – The University of Pittsburgh softball team dropped its home opener to Ohio, 11-9, in an extra-innings battle Tuesday night at Vartabedian Field in the Petersen Sports Complex.
The Bobcats used a six-run seventh inning to take a 9-4 lead before the Panthers answered back in the bottom of the frame with five runs of their own, tying the contest and sending it into extras, where Ohio would ultimately come out on top.
"I was just really proud of us going toe-to-toe with an aggressive offense in Ohio and having the opportunity to close the door there in the seventh," said head coach Jodi Hermanek. "Once again, we found ourselves right there in the top of the seventh, but it didn't go our way, and we ended up giving them a chance to get back in the game.
"But, it was great to see our offense take advantage of its opportunities in the bottom of the seventh one at-bat after another, and then a huge bomb by Alexee Haynes coming in and keeping us alive. I was really proud of the offense today and I thought we had some clutch defensive plays as well, we just fell one fly ball short today."
The Panthers utilized three pitchers on the mound in senior Taylor Rahach, redshirt sophomore Brittany Knight and freshman Abby Edwards. The trio combined to allow nine earned runs while striking out six through 10 innings of play.
Pitt produced at the plate, collecting 11 hits from eight different players. Sophomore Hunter Levesque led the way with a 2-for-4 effort, adding four RBIs, three runs, two home runs and one walk. Senior Gabrielle Fredericks and junior Walker Barbee both recorded two hits on the day as well, with Fredericks adding a long ball in the contest. Senior Alexis Solak, junior Alexee Haynes, sophomores Morgan Batesole and Chandler Walter and freshman Katlyn Pavlick all recorded one hit apiece in the matchup, with Haynes adding a grand slam in the seventh frame.
SCORING SUMMARY
Ohio got on the board first, using consecutive solo shots to take a 2-0 lead in the first inning.
The Bobcats went up 3-0 in the top of the third following another long ball.
Pitt answered in the bottom of the frame, with Levesque sending a two-run shot over the left field wall to put the score at 3-2.
In her next plate appearance, Levesque roped another two-run rocket, giving the Panthers a 4-3 lead through five innings.
Pitt held on to its one-run lead heading into the seventh frame, before an offensive explosion from both teams sent the game into a frenzy.
The Bobcats used a two-run homer to take a 5-4 lead, before adding four more runs in the frame to take what looked to be a commanding 9-4 advantage heading into the bottom of the inning.
The Panthers would fight back though, with Haynes using a grand slam over the center field wall to put the game at 9-8. In the next at-bat, Fredericks roped a solo shot off the scoreboard, tying the contest at nine apiece and sending the game into extra innings.
With the bases loaded in the top of the 10th, the Bobcats would take advantage of an outfield error to score two, giving them an 11-9 lead and the eventual win.
UP NEXT
The Panthers will host ACC opponent Virginia Tech for a three-game series at Vartabedian Field beginning Friday, March 22.
#H2P | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook
The Bobcats used a six-run seventh inning to take a 9-4 lead before the Panthers answered back in the bottom of the frame with five runs of their own, tying the contest and sending it into extras, where Ohio would ultimately come out on top.
"I was just really proud of us going toe-to-toe with an aggressive offense in Ohio and having the opportunity to close the door there in the seventh," said head coach Jodi Hermanek. "Once again, we found ourselves right there in the top of the seventh, but it didn't go our way, and we ended up giving them a chance to get back in the game.
"But, it was great to see our offense take advantage of its opportunities in the bottom of the seventh one at-bat after another, and then a huge bomb by Alexee Haynes coming in and keeping us alive. I was really proud of the offense today and I thought we had some clutch defensive plays as well, we just fell one fly ball short today."
The Panthers utilized three pitchers on the mound in senior Taylor Rahach, redshirt sophomore Brittany Knight and freshman Abby Edwards. The trio combined to allow nine earned runs while striking out six through 10 innings of play.
Pitt produced at the plate, collecting 11 hits from eight different players. Sophomore Hunter Levesque led the way with a 2-for-4 effort, adding four RBIs, three runs, two home runs and one walk. Senior Gabrielle Fredericks and junior Walker Barbee both recorded two hits on the day as well, with Fredericks adding a long ball in the contest. Senior Alexis Solak, junior Alexee Haynes, sophomores Morgan Batesole and Chandler Walter and freshman Katlyn Pavlick all recorded one hit apiece in the matchup, with Haynes adding a grand slam in the seventh frame.
SCORING SUMMARY
Ohio got on the board first, using consecutive solo shots to take a 2-0 lead in the first inning.
The Bobcats went up 3-0 in the top of the third following another long ball.
Pitt answered in the bottom of the frame, with Levesque sending a two-run shot over the left field wall to put the score at 3-2.
In her next plate appearance, Levesque roped another two-run rocket, giving the Panthers a 4-3 lead through five innings.
Pitt held on to its one-run lead heading into the seventh frame, before an offensive explosion from both teams sent the game into a frenzy.
The Bobcats used a two-run homer to take a 5-4 lead, before adding four more runs in the frame to take what looked to be a commanding 9-4 advantage heading into the bottom of the inning.
The Panthers would fight back though, with Haynes using a grand slam over the center field wall to put the game at 9-8. In the next at-bat, Fredericks roped a solo shot off the scoreboard, tying the contest at nine apiece and sending the game into extra innings.
With the bases loaded in the top of the 10th, the Bobcats would take advantage of an outfield error to score two, giving them an 11-9 lead and the eventual win.
UP NEXT
The Panthers will host ACC opponent Virginia Tech for a three-game series at Vartabedian Field beginning Friday, March 22.
#H2P | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: KOHL, M. (8-2)
L: Knight, Brittany (2-10)
Batting:
2B: DAY, A. 2
3B: COLE, D. 1
HR: YUN, K. 3 ; ALVAREZ, N. 1
RBI: YUN, K. 4 ; ALVAREZ, N. 1 ; DAY, A. 1 ; COLE, D. 2 ; SPACEK, C. 1
SH: ENGLANT, A. 1 ; COLE, D. 1 ; SPACEK, C. 1
Base Running:
RUNS: YUN, K. 3 ; ALVAREZ, N. 2 ; HARGRAVE, T. 1 ; GENO, M. 2 ; DAY, A. 1 ; COLE, D. 1 ; HOLLAND, A. 1
SB: BRUNSWICK, M 1
HBP: HOLLAND, A. 1
Batting:
HR: Levesque, Hunter 2 ; Haynes, Alexee 1 ; Fredericks, Gabrielle 1
RBI: Levesque, Hunter 4 ; Haynes, Alexee 4 ; Fredericks, Gabrielle 1
SH: Solak, Alexis 1 ; Walter, Chandler 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Pavlick, Katlyn 2 ; Levesque, Hunter 3 ; Haynes, Alexee 1 ; Fredericks, Gabrielle 1 ; Bach, Hannah 1 ; Seamans, Sarah 1
Game Leaders
Hitting
AB
4
R
3
H
2
RBI
4
AB
5
R
1
H
2
RBI
1
AB
3
R
0
H
2
RBI
0
AB
4
R
2
H
1
RBI
0
Players Mentioned
C
/ Softball
INF
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P/U
/ SoftballINF/C
/ Softball
INF
/ Softball
P/INF
/ SoftballOF/INF
/ SoftballOF/INF
/ Softball
P
/ Softball
INF
/ Softball
INF
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