Softball team tames Longhorns in split offense-heavy doubleheader
Strong winds affects game balls
Pitching dominates 8-1 victory but falters in second game, resulting in 2-1 loss against Texas.
By Kelly Breckunitch (Contact)
Monday, April 14th, 2008
The University softball team split its double header with the University of Texas Sunday. The Jayhawks won the first game 8-1, but lost a close second contest with a score of 2-1.
The Hawks had the offense going in the first game on Sunday. The team scored in three of the four innings that it got a leadoff hit. In the fourth inning, the team played nearly perfect small ball. Junior third baseman Val Chapple opened the inning with a double. Freshman right fielder Liz Kocon then lay down a sacrifice bunt to move Chapple to third base and freshman catcher Brittany Hile drove in Chapple with a sacrifice fly. The run, along with a run scored by junior shortstop Stevie Crisosto in the first inning, put the team up 2-0.
Photo by Jon Goering
Junior third-base player Val Chapple slides into home to score on a sacrafice fly by freshman catcher Brittany Hile during the fourth inning of the first game of a double-header against Texas at Arocha Ballpark. The run gave the Hawks a 2-0 lead. Kansas split with the Longhorns, winning 8-1 in the first game and losing 2-1 in the second.
The offense really started clicking in the fifth inning, though. The Jayhawks loaded the bases, and after Texas sophomore pitcher Erin Tresselt allowed one run to score on a walk, Chapple drove in two more runs on a bases-loaded double. The team put two more runs on the board and scored one run in the sixth to solidify the victory.
Junior pitcher Valerie George kept the Longhorns in check. Even without the added run support from the big fifth inning, George was still in control of the game. She gave up five walks to Texas but was able to get out of jams, including a bases-loaded situation in the third inning without any trouble.
Chapple said that George’s amazing pitching had been a big benefit for the team. “Sometimes we’ve had to lean on her too much,” Chapple said.
The first game was a balance of offense and pitching for the Jayhawks, but while the pitching was good in the second game, the offense was lacking.
The wind affected any balls hit in the air all day.
“Every ball up in the air today was an adventure,” coach Tracy Bunge said.
Still, sophomore pitcher Sarah Vertelka was able to induce a lot of groundball outs, but she didn’t get enough run support to win the game. Vertelka’s only big mistake was giving up a homerun to Texas sophomore Tallie Thrasher. Thrasher scored both of the runs for the Longhorn’s 2-1 victory in the second game. Junior center fielder Dougie McCaulley scored the only run for the Jayhawks, as she and freshman catcher Brittany Hile were the only Jayhawks to record hits in the second game.
Bunge said it was good to see Vertelka coming out so strong after dealing with an injury.
“Sarah’s been out for a week, week and a half here with a hand injury, and it was nice to see her bounce back and throw a pretty solid ball game for us,” Bunge said.
Bunge said the defense had struggled putting together a solid game because of a lack of practice outside, but she was happy to see a solid effort from the team on Sunday.
The Jayhawks will next face their rival Missouri Tigers in a doubleheader Wednesday at Missouri. Bunge said the team would needed to prepare for Missouri’s potent offense.
“They’re a team that can score a lot of runs in a hurry,” Bunge said.
She said the team would need to step up the offense and score a lot of runs to match the Missouri offense and get a victory.
— Edited by Matt Hirschfeld
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