2007 NCAA Softball Regional -- Game 4 Recap
5/19/2007 12:00:00 AM | Softball
Oregon State 6, Eastern Michigan 1
Game 4 -- Saturday, May 19 -- 2:30 p.m.
Alumni Field, Ann Arbor, Mich.
Site: Ann Arbor, Mich. (Alumni Field)
Event: NCAA Softball Championship Regional 9 (Game 4)
Score: Oregon State 6, Eastern Michigan 1
Records: Oregon State (40-22), Eastern Michigan (27-22)
Next Oregon State Game: Saturday, May 19 -- vs. Louisville, 5 p.m.
Next Eastern Michigan Game: Eastern Michigan eliminated with 0-2 record
Young's Bat Pushes Oregon State Past Eagles
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- No. 15-ranked Oregon State kept its season alive by defeating Eastern Michigan (6-1) in a loser's bracket contest on Saturday afternoon (May 19) on Alumni Field. With the win, the Beavers advanced to a Saturday evening contest against Louisville, which lost earlier in the day to host Michigan. The OSU-UL winner will face No. 10 Michigan on Sunday (May 20) for the Ann Arbor Region championship and a place in next weekend's NCAA Super Regionals.
Brianne McGowan earned the win in relief for Oregon State to improve her record to 24-13 on the season. EMU's Aimee Woodrum (12-9) took the loss. DeAnn Young was the hero for the Beavers, going 2-for-4 with 4 RBI on a home run and a double.
Oregon State opened the scoring in the top of the first inning when Mia Longfellow scored from second base on a two-out single up the middle by Brianne McGowan to take a 1-0 lead.
OSU worked out of a first and third jam in the second inning by replacing starter Ta'Tyana McElroy with Brianne McGowan. After EMU's Heather Han doubled and McElroy walked another batter, McGowan stepped in and forced a pair of easy groundouts to end the inning unscathed.
The Beavers upped their lead to 3-0 with two runs in the top of the third inning. Longfellow singled and was driven home by a towering shot to left field courtesy of DeAnn Young.
Eastern Michigan finally broke its silence in the bottom of the fourth inning starting with Han's second double on the day. Jessica Grant then reached base on an error by the pitcher on a slow dribbler putting runners on the corners. With two down and the bases loaded after a walk, Lauren Clark's ground ball was fumbled by the second baseman, which allowed Grant to cross home plate. With the bases still loaded, Stephanie Sabo struck out swinging to end EMU's best opportunity of the game.
OSU added three insurance runs in the top half of the seventh to make it 6-1. Natalie Chisolm reached first when the EMU first baseman bobbled a ground ball. Chisholm moved up one station following a sacrifice bunt and advanced all the way home on Cambria Miranda single to center field. Young just missed her second home run of the day on a shot to right field. Young settled for a double and a pair of RBI on the play.
While Eastern Michigan tried to rally in its last at-bat with back-to-back singles by Sabo and Strauss, Oregon State ended the game by turning a 6-4-3 double play.
Q U O T E S
Eastern Michigan Head Coach Karen Baird
On the game ... "I felt we were in the game for most of it until the seventh inning when they started getting some hits at the end. But our hitting was much better than yesterday, and our defense was right there. We were definitely in the game until the very end. This team just fights and fights until the very end."
On the difference in today's hitting versus yesterday ... "We were trying to keep it simple. That's what we kept saying. See the ball; hit the ball. We tried not to overswing and focused more on getting base hits.
On the 2007 season ... "I'm going to remember this season for a long time. It was a very historical season for us. These seven seniors brought us to a whole new level. It started with their freshman year when we beat Florida State, and they just kept coming out every year and putting forth a better season. So, I'm really proud of our seniors and what they've done for this program."
EMU Catcher Heather Han
On her performance at the plate ... "I just went out and played the best that I could. Everyone played their part. You never know when you're last game will be, so we just put it all out on the field.
On the Eagles' season ... "This season has given us a lot of confidence and given us something great to build on. We're going to come back really young, especially in the pitching staff, and we're going to have to build up from there. I think (Michelle) Hletko will be a great starter, and, hopefully, we'll be able to come back here next year."
