Buckeye Softball Falls In 10 Innings, 2-1, at Chattanooga – Ohio State Buckeyes
3/25/2002 12:00:00 AM | Softball
March 25, 2002
Box Score
COLUMBUS, Ohio – The Ohio State softball team, winners of 14 games in a row and seven in a three day span at the Georgia Tech/Buzz Classic in Atlanta over the weekend, made a stop in Chattanooga, Tenn., Monday night and had its streak halted by the UTC Mocs, 2-1, in 10 innings in front of 728 fans at Frost Stadium. The Buckeyes (27-6) scored their run in the top of the first but were shut out the remainder of the game while Chattanooga (20-8) scored once in the bottom of the seventh and the bottom of the tenth to earn the victory.
Jennifer Link (Jr., Yorba Linda, Calif./Sonora), Anna Smith (Sr., Walnut, Calif./Diamond Bar) and Wendy Allen (So., Moreno Valley, Calif./Moreno Valley) opened the game with three singles in a row. Link led off with a hit and moved to second on Smith’s infield single. Allen put the ball through the middle of the infield and Link came in to score and put the Buckeyes ahead, 1-0.
OSU held on to the lead with Katie Chain (Jr., North Canton, Ohio/Hoover) striking out 11 Mocs and scattering two hits. Chain and the Buckeyes went into the bottom of the seventh still clinging to their 1-0 lead when UTC’s Melissa Ramirez changed everything. Ramirez led off the bottom of the inning by launching a home run over the right-center field wall to knot the game at one.
After the two teams were unsuccessful in scoring in the eighth and ninth innings, the international tiebreaker went into effect. The Buckeyes could not score, going three and out in the top half of the inning and setting up a wild finish. Ramirez went to second and Jada Pescatore was intentionally walked for runners at first and second. Jill Crawford advanced both runners and reached first by placing a bunt between Chain and third baseman Kristine Himes (Jr., Bolivar, Ohio/Tuscarawas Valley) to load the bases. Chain appeared to be heading towards getting of the jam by striking out her 11th and 12th batters of the game before throwing a wild pitch that allowed Ramirez to trot home for the gamewinning run. The Buckeyes slipped to 2-3 in extra innings on the year with their wins coming over the weekend at the Buzz. OSU upset No. 20 Florida State, 2-1, in 11 innings before downing North Carolina in the tournament championship game, 6-3, in 10.
OSU opens Big Ten Conference play this weekend with four games in the state of Michigan. The Buckeyes face Michigan State in East Lansing, Mich., Friday and Saturday at 3 p.m. and 1 p.m., respectively, before traveling to Ann Arbor, Mich., for a doubleheader showdown with the Michigan Wolverines starting a Noon.
