Jayhawks hit season-ending split

Kansas loses 2-1, wins 6-2 against Iowa State

By Kelly Breckunitch

Monday, May 5, 2008

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Photo by Weston White

Sophomore first baseman Amanda Jobe stretches out to make a catch thrown from junior pitcher Valerie George (right) after fielding a bunt. Kansas fell short of a victory Saturday afternoon against Iowa State losing 2-1.

The University of Kansas softball team ended the regular season with another series split, this time against the Iowa State Cyclones. The Jayhawks started off the series a little shaky with a 2-1 loss in the first game but came back to finish the weekend with a 6-2 victory in the second game.

The team had a rough time from the offensive side in the first game. Freshman right fielder Liz Kocon had two of the three hits in the game, while sophomore first baseman Amanda Jobe added the third. Junior pitcher Valerie George did as much as she could to limit the Iowa State offense, but big hits helped earn the Cyclones a victory. Sophomore catcher Alex Johnson hit a home run for the Cyclones and sophomore Amanda Bradberry drove in the only other run of the game. George did force Iowa State to strand seven runners on base, but the offense could not give her enough run support to get the victory.

Coach Tracy Bunge said senior day was a very big deal going into the second game of the series. “The team really wanted to get one today for them,” Bunge said.

The second game was a lot different for the Jayhawks. The team compiled five hits and got on base with five walks. Freshman catcher Brittany Hile kick-started the offense with a solo home run in the second inning and junior third baseman Val Chapple followed that with a three-run home run in the third inning. Freshman pitcher Allie Clark was able to minimize the damage from Iowa State’s offense. Clark gave up two solo home runs in the game, but she forced Iowa State to strand eight runners on base. She also struck out six Cyclones. Junior center fielder Dougie McCaulley and Kocon added some insurance runs in the sixth inning to cushion the team’s lead. George relieved Clark in the sixth inning and finished out the game to get the save.

Bunge said Hile’s home run was a big hit but Chapple’s home run may have been even bigger. “That was obviously a big hit for us with two outs right there and two runners on base and gave us a little bit of breathing room,” Bunge said.

Bunge said a lot of the team had been battling the flu bug, and the performance from a thin pitching staff and a retooled lineup was great. “Those kids, you know, they fought hard, and they gave us a lot, and today was a little bit about a gut check for a lot of kids,” Bunge said.

The team finished the regular season with a 37-18 record, the most wins for a KU team since Bunge’s first year as coach at Kansas. The Jayhawks now prepare for the conference tournament where they will be the seventh seed. Bunge and a lot of her players won’t be worried, though, because they said through the season that they enjoyed being the underdog.

— Edited by Katherine Loeck

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