Ohio State Knocks Off Virginia Tech, 4-0 – Ohio State Buckeyes
3/10/2007 12:00:00 AM | Softball
March 10, 2007
Box Score | Notes
CLEARWATER, Fla. – Sophomore Kim Reeder threw a three-hit shutout and the Ohio State softball team scored four runs with two outs in the sixth inning to top Virginia Tech, 4-0, Saturday at the USF adidas Invitational at Eddie C. Moore Complex in Clearwater.
With the win, the Buckeyes (10-9) end pool play with a 3-2 record and await the announcement of the tournament’s single-elimination bracket, which begins Saturday afternoon. Virginia Tech (18-7), which is just one point out of the Top 25, also concludes pool play with a 3-2 record.
Reeder (Salinas, Calif./Notre Dame H.S.) out-dueled Virginia Tech All-American Angela Tincher for the win. Reeder struck out five and walked two to improve to 7-3 on the season and collect her fifth career shutout.
Tincher (14-2), whose 504 strikeouts last season set an Atlantic Coast Conference record, entered the game Saturday with 210 strikeouts in 99.1 innings pitched this season and had suffered only one loss, that coming to No. 7 Michigan, 1-0. Ohio State struck out a season-high 14 times against Tincher, but collected five hits, including a triple and a double.
“We have faced a lot of good pitchers this year and we go up against most team’s No. 1, but Tincher was as good as we have seen,” Linda Kalafatis, Ohio State head coach, said. “We didn’t execute our game plan the first time through our lineup, but our kids made some adjustments and had a break-through inning. Kim Reeder was in command all day and that was key because she was able to keep them guessing. Defensively we were rock solid and came up with some big plays like Sam Marder’s throw out of their fastest kid trying to stealing second.”
The Buckeyes had only one hit through five innings but batted around in the sixth, all with two outs. Senior Nycole Koyano (Walnut, Calif./Walnut) tripled to left-center field and scored on a single up the middle by junior Brittany Vanderink (Hiram, Ohio/Crestwood), who caught the Hokies sleeping on the play and took second base. Freshman Sam Marder (Calabasas, Calif./Calabasas) then brought home Vanderink with a double to the fence in left field on a ball that would have been out of most parks.
Sophomore Michelle Reynolds-Parra (Columbus, Ohio/Eastmoor), pinch-running for Marder, then scored from second on a single up the middle by senior Megan Schwab (Glendale, Ariz./Sunrise Mountain). Senior Jamee Juarez (La Puente, Calif./Wilson) was hit by a pitch and senior Christina Douglas (Mesa, Ariz./Dobson) reached on an error to load the bases. Sophomore Courtney Pruner (Akron, Ohio/Ellet) then drew an RBI walk, Tincher’s only free pass of the game, to bring home the Buckeyes’ final run.
Vanderink broke up Tincher’s perfect game with a bunt single in the fourth inning.
### Go Bucks! ###
