Softball Brings Home Auburn Invitational Title – Ohio State Buckeyes
2/11/2001 12:00:00 AM | Softball
Feb. 11, 2001
Box Score
COLUMBUS, Ohio–The Ohio State softball team (4-2), seeded No. 3 at the Jameson Inn-Auburn Invitational after splitting doubleheaders Friday and Saturday, defeated previously unbeaten No. 1 seed and host Auburn, 4-0, in extra innings to claim the invitational championship along with conference foe Purdue.
After a 3-2 win over Syracuse Sunday morning – OSU’s second win over the Orangewomen in as many days – in the opening round of the single-elimination final day of the invitational, the Buckeyes faced off with Auburn (6-1) a day after falling to the Tigers, 3-2.
The nine-inning thriller lasted over three hours, pushing back the scheduled championship game that was to follow. Both the Buckeyes and Purdue had scheduled return flights, meaning there was not sufficient time for the Big Ten teams to square off for the invitational title. Instead, OSU and the Boilermakers were recognized as co-champions.
“After round-robin play, I challenged the team because we had lost two one-run games,” OSU head coach Linda Kalafatis said. “I like to see us step up in this kind of situation. We took a one-run victory and won a war in extra innings against a good Auburn team on their field at their tournament.”
Kristi DeVries (Fr., Corona, Calif./Corona) went the distance for the Buckeyes, tossing a two-hitter and registering 11 strikeouts in nine innings to earn her third win in as many tries in her young collegiate career. She was named to the All-invitational team and recognized as the Most Valuable Pitcher of the invitational for her efforts.
Stacy Roth (Jr., Wauseon, Ohio/Wauseon), Kristine Himes (So., Bolivar, Ohio/Tuscarawas) and Katie Chain (So., North Canton, Ohio/Hoover) also were named to the All-invitational team. OSU had the most selections of any of the five schools that participated at the invitational. Auburn was next with three selections.
Auburn pitcher Jaime Rasmussen also pitched all nine innings of the contest, giving up six hits. The game remained scoreless until the ninth inning. In extra innings – where a runner is automatically placed at second at the start of each inning – both teams had a runner advance to third. Both pitchers battled out of the inning to prolong the game, however.
Chrissy Fowler (Jr., Utica, Ohio/Wright State), pinch running for Himes, was placed at second in the top of the ninth. Wendy Allen (Moreno Valley, Calif./Moreno Valley) hit a ground ball to third base. An overthrow to first base allowed Fowler to score the first run of the game and put Allen on second base.
Jenn Elwell ( Jr., Dearborn Heights, Mich./Divine Child) came in to pinch run for Allen. After Devries drew a walk, Sarah West (Jr., Galloway, Ohio/Hilliard Davidson) dropped a sacrifice bunt, advancing Elwell to third and DeVries to second. Rogeanna Hottinger (So., Newark, Ohio/Newark) singled to center field to score Elwell and move DeVries to third. Annie Dedic grounded out to the pitcher, moving Hottinger to second. Anna Smith (Walnut, Calif./Diamond Bar) slapped a double to center field, bringing in DeVries and Hottinger to put OSU up, 4-0.
DeVries forced a ground out and struck out two in the bottom of the ninth to preserve the win.
In game one, Chain continued to dominate as she had in her two previous outings, giving up two hits over four innings to help the Buckeyes to narrow 2-1 win over Syracuse. Chain gave up just two hits in a 1-0 loss to Purdue on Friday and allowed four hits in a 3-2 loss to Auburn Saturday, resulting in her being named to the All-invitational team despite a misleading 1-2 record.
Himes put OSU on the scoreboard in the bottom of the second, cranking a homerun over the left field wall. Himes first home run of the season gives her 11 for her career, just two behind the career mark of 13 set last season by Renae Weigel.
In the third inning, Holly English (Sr., Akron, Ohio/Springfield) dropped a single between third base and the left fielder. After moving to second on a Smith single back to the pitcher, English stole third. A sacrifice fly to left field by Jennifer Link (Yorba Linda, Calif./Sonora) scored English, giving OSU a 2-0 lead. Syracuse cut the lead to 2-1 in the fourth but Allen came in and shut the door, holding Auburn to two hits in the final three innings to earn the save and help the Buckeyes advance.
