Friday, May 3
Pittsburgh, Pa.
3 PM
Pitt
11-41, 5-17
11
vs
0
Boston College
18-33, 4-18
1
2
3
4
5
6
R
H
E
Boston College
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
7
1
Pitt
0
0
0
5
0
6
11
6
0
Photo by: Matt Hawley/Pitt Athletics
Dawson Tosses Shutout in Series Opener against Eagles
5/3/2019 7:23:00 PM | Softball
Solak Blasts Grand Slam to Close out Contest against Boston College
PITTSBURGH – The University of Pittsburgh softball team used strong performances on both offense and defense to pick up an 11-0 run rule victory against Boston College in its series opener Friday afternoon at Vartabedian Field.
"Game one, to come out and win really sets the stage and standard for how we're going to approach the weekend," said head coach Jodi Hermanek. "So, to come out here on this scale, is huge for us. We can't put on the brakes or take off the accelerator, we need to come at them tomorrow again."
Senior Sarah Dawson earned the start for the Panthers, tossing a complete-game shutout while striking out four in six innings of action.
"I thought Sarah [Dawson] did a good job working through her innings," said Hermanek. "The fun part is, is that it wasn't her best day. She wasn't feeling her sharpest and she was getting behind a lot of batters. That's where the defense comes into play and getting outs. I'm just proud of her for working through a day where she probably wasn't her sharpest, but it happens. It's her experience that led her through getting that win and getting that shutout."
Offensively, Pitt produced 11 runs off of six hits, with all of its runs coming with two outs in the inning. Seniors Olivia Gray and Alexis Solak, juniors Walker Barbee and Kaitlyn Kruger and sophomores Morgan Batesole and Hunter Levesque all added one hit apiece in the matchup, with Solak collecting a grand slam in the sixth inning to enact the run rule and end the game.
"It was huge," said Hermanek of the Panthers' clutch hitting. "[Susannah] Anderson was doing a good job the first time through the lineup and then we ended up making some good adjustments and taking advantage of some walks, hit-by-pitches and miscues defensively, and just compiled two big innings against their pitching staff. I'm excited about it, and just excited about this win in general."
SCORING SUMMARY
Both teams were scoreless through the first three innings before Pitt used a five-run fourth frame to break open the game. Barbee gave the Panthers their first runs of the contest via a two-RBI double to right center. With the bases loaded, a walk by Gray then put the score at 3-0. Levesque then used a two-RBI single to right field to give Pitt a 5-0 advantage.
The Panthers later tacked on six more runs in the sixth inning. Kruger made it 6-0 following a pinch-hit solo shot to left field before a bases-loaded walk by Horrell put the game at 7-0. In the next at-bat, Solak blasted a grand slam over the center field wall to enact the run rule and give Pitt the 11-0 victory.
UP NEXT
The Panthers will hold Senior Day during game two against Boston College 4 p.m. Saturday, May 4 at Vartabedian Field.
#H2P | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook
"Game one, to come out and win really sets the stage and standard for how we're going to approach the weekend," said head coach Jodi Hermanek. "So, to come out here on this scale, is huge for us. We can't put on the brakes or take off the accelerator, we need to come at them tomorrow again."
Senior Sarah Dawson earned the start for the Panthers, tossing a complete-game shutout while striking out four in six innings of action.
"I thought Sarah [Dawson] did a good job working through her innings," said Hermanek. "The fun part is, is that it wasn't her best day. She wasn't feeling her sharpest and she was getting behind a lot of batters. That's where the defense comes into play and getting outs. I'm just proud of her for working through a day where she probably wasn't her sharpest, but it happens. It's her experience that led her through getting that win and getting that shutout."
Offensively, Pitt produced 11 runs off of six hits, with all of its runs coming with two outs in the inning. Seniors Olivia Gray and Alexis Solak, juniors Walker Barbee and Kaitlyn Kruger and sophomores Morgan Batesole and Hunter Levesque all added one hit apiece in the matchup, with Solak collecting a grand slam in the sixth inning to enact the run rule and end the game.
"It was huge," said Hermanek of the Panthers' clutch hitting. "[Susannah] Anderson was doing a good job the first time through the lineup and then we ended up making some good adjustments and taking advantage of some walks, hit-by-pitches and miscues defensively, and just compiled two big innings against their pitching staff. I'm excited about it, and just excited about this win in general."
SCORING SUMMARY
Both teams were scoreless through the first three innings before Pitt used a five-run fourth frame to break open the game. Barbee gave the Panthers their first runs of the contest via a two-RBI double to right center. With the bases loaded, a walk by Gray then put the score at 3-0. Levesque then used a two-RBI single to right field to give Pitt a 5-0 advantage.
The Panthers later tacked on six more runs in the sixth inning. Kruger made it 6-0 following a pinch-hit solo shot to left field before a bases-loaded walk by Horrell put the game at 7-0. In the next at-bat, Solak blasted a grand slam over the center field wall to enact the run rule and give Pitt the 11-0 victory.
UP NEXT
The Panthers will hold Senior Day during game two against Boston College 4 p.m. Saturday, May 4 at Vartabedian Field.
#H2P | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Dawson, Sarah (2-2)
L: Anderson (6-19)
Batting:
2B: DiEmmanuele 1
Base Running:
SB: DiEmmanuele 1
CS: DiEmmanuele 1
Batting:
2B: Barbee, Walker 1
HR: Solak, Alexis 1 ; Kruger, Kaitlyn 1
RBI: Gray, Olivia 1 ; Levesque, Hunter 2 ; Horrell, Brie 1 ; Solak, Alexis 4 ; Barbee, Walker 2 ; Kruger, Kaitlyn 1
SH: Haynes, Alexee 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Gray, Olivia 1 ; Pavlick, Katlyn 1 ; Fredericks, Gabrielle 1 ; Bach, Hannah 1 ; Seamans, Sarah 1 ; Solak, Alexis 1 ; McGaffic, Connor 1 ; Barbee, Walker 1 ; Myers, Taylor 1 ; Batesole, Morgan 1 ; Kruger, Kaitlyn 1
SB: Levesque, Hunter 1
HBP: Fredericks, Gabrielle 1 ; Horrell, Brie 1 ; McGaffic, Connor 1 ; Myers, Taylor 1
Game Leaders
AB
1
R
1
H
1
RBI
1
AB
3
R
0
H
1
RBI
2
AB
4
R
1
H
1
RBI
4
AB
3
R
1
H
1
RBI
2
Players Mentioned
C
/ Softball
INF
/ Softball
P
/ SoftballINF
/ Softball
INF/OF
/ SoftballOF/INF
/ SoftballINF
/ Softball2025 Hall of Fame Class | Jessica Dignon
Saturday, September 27
Highlights | Pitt vs. Virginia Tech
Friday, April 18
Highlights | Pitt at Penn State
Tuesday, April 15
Highlights | Pitt vs. Duke
Saturday, April 12