Softball Wins Big, Then Loses Big

FRESNO -- BYU senior Jodi Norton hammered a grand slam to left center in the top of the third inning to lead the Cougars (12-8) to an 8-2 victory over Purdue (6-16), but a 10-run first inning by Penn State (8-9) proved to be insurmountable as BYU lost the back end of Saturday's double-header, 17-4, to the Nittany Lions at the Bulldog Classic.

In the top of the order in the first inning, Emi Snow hit a single that sent Jennifer Whiteley to third and then home thanks to a throwing error by Purdue second baseman Kelly Miller. The Boilermakers came right back at the Cougars, as a Katie Mitchell triple with runners in scoring position gave Purdue the 2-1 lead after one.

After a scoreless second inning, BYU found itself with runners at first and third with Snow at the plate. Snow came through again, this time for an RBI single down the left field line. Dani Urincho's single that followed loaded up the bases for Norton. The senior who finished second in the Mountain West Conference last season in home runs and RBI swatted a grand slam to left center, putting the Cougars up 6-2.

Urincho hit a lead-off double in the fifth inning to right center. Two batters later, Tracee Hoch singled to left field to score pinch-runner Jana Anderson. Sophomore Andi Ramirez, who went 3-for-4 against Purdue, drove in Monica Gonzales with a right-field single in the seventh inning for the 8-2 final.

Christina Gwyn pitched her seventh complete game of the season to get her seventh win and retired nine straight batters after giving up the two runs in the first inning.

Penn State stunned BYU right off the bat with a 10-run first inning. The Cougars got one of those runs back in the bottom of the order when Snow hit a sacrifice fly to score Whiteley from third. Two solo home runs from Norton and Hoch in the second got BYU within seven.

However, the Nittany Lions would pull away in the fourth with another big inning. Gwyn, who replaced freshman Christie Zinanti in the first inning, loaded up the bases after she had put away seven consecutive batters. Jenn Reynolds knocked a two-RBI double down the right field line. Two batters later, and with Zinanti back in, Meghan Wolfer hit an RBI single to give Penn State the 13-3 lead. Unable to produce enough runs and having given up an additional four unearned runs, the game was called after the fifth inning due to the Cougars trailing by more than eight runs.

After a few days of rest, BYU heads back to the West Coast to play in the Capital Classic in Sacramento, Calif. The Cougars meet Iowa on Thursday, March 15 at 1 p.m. (PST) and Minnesota at 6 p.m.

BYU vs Purdue
                Mar 10, 2007 at Fresno, Calif. (Bulldog Diamond)
BYU 8 (12-7)
Player                    AB  R  H RBI BB SO PO  A LOB
------------------------------------------------------
NIX-CLARK, Cortney c.....  4  1  2  0   0  1  7  0   2
WHITELEY, Jennifer lf....  4  1  3  0   1  0  0  0   2
QUIOCHO, Angeline 3b.....  4  1  0  0   0  1  2  3   0
SNOW, Emi cf.............  4  1  2  1   0  0  1  0   1
URINCHO, Daniela 1b......  4  1  2  0   0  0  6  0   2
 ANDERSON, Jana pr.......  0  1  0  0   0  0  0  0   0
NORTON, Jodi ss..........  4  1  2  4   0  0  1  3   0
 GONZALES, Monica pr.....  0  1  0  0   0  0  0  0   0
RAMIREZ, Andrea dp.......  4  0  3  1   0  1  0  0   0
HOCH, Tracee 2b..........  3  0  1  1   0  1  2  0   0
PLATT, Stephanie rf......  4  0  0  0   0  1  2  0   2
GWYN, Christina p........  0  0  0  0   0  0  0  2   0
Totals................... 35  8 15  7   1  5 21  8   9
Purdue 2 (6-16)
Player                    AB  R  H RBI BB SO PO  A LOB
------------------------------------------------------
Hall, Ashley 3b..........  2  1  1  0   1  1  0  2   0
Barr, Ashley lf..........  2  0  1  0   0  1  0  0   0
Curtis, Candace ss.......  3  1  1  0   0  0  3  3   1
Mitchell, Katie dp.......  3  0  1  2   0  1  0  0   0
Haupert, Kelsey 1b.......  2  0  0  0   1  1  6  1   0
Peterson, Erika c........  3  0  1  0   0  1  5  0   1
Zaworski, Catherine rf...  2  0  0  0   0  0  3  0   0
Trauger, Christina cf....  2  0  0  0   0  1  0  0   0
 Johnson, DaQueta ph.....  1  0  0  0   0  0  0  0   2
Miller, Kelly 2b.........  3  0  0  0   0  0  4  1   0
Baker, Brooke p..........  0  0  0  0   0  0  0  3   0
Totals................... 23  2  5  2   2  6 21 10   4
Score by Innings                  R  H  E
-----------------------------------------
BYU................. 105 010 1 -  8 15  0
Purdue.............. 200 000 0 -  2  5  3
-----------------------------------------
E - Haupert, K.; Zaworski, C.; Miller, K.. DP - BYU 1; Purdue 1. LOB - BYU
9; Purdue 4. 2B - URINCHO; Curtis, C.. 3B - Mitchell, K.. HR - NORTON. HBP -
NIX-CLARK. SH - HOCH; Barr, A.; Zaworski, C.. SB - QUIOCHO.
BYU                    IP  H  R ER BB SO AB BF
-----------------------------------------------
GWYN, Christina.....  7.0  5  2  2  2  6 23 27
Purdue                 IP  H  R ER BB SO AB BF
-----------------------------------------------
Baker, Brooke.......  7.0 15  8  7  1  5 35 38
Win - GWYN (7-4).  Loss - Baker, B. (3-8).  Save - None.
HBP - by Baker, B. (NIX-CLARK).
Umpires - HP: Jim Kane  1B: Dennis Wren  3B: Lisa Paull
Start: 9 a.m.   Time: 2:15   Attendance:
Game: PSB0722
Play-by-Play
Score by Innings                  R  H  E
-----------------------------------------
BYU................. 105 010 1 -  8 15  0
Purdue.............. 200 000 0 -  2  5  3
-----------------------------------------
BYU starters: 10/c NIX-CLARK; 3/lf WHITELEY; 33/3b QUIOCHO; 18/cf SNOW; 22/1b
URINCHO; 8/ss NORTON; 31/dp RAMIREZ; 4/2b HOCH; 5/rf PLATT; 11/p GWYN;
Purdue starters: 23/3b Hall, A.; 5/lf Barr, A.; 24/ss Curtis, C.; 15/dp
Mitchell, K.; 27/1b Haupert, K.; 17/c Peterson, E.; 21/rf Zaworski, C.; 14/cf
Trauger, C.; 1/2b Miller, K.; 10/p Baker, B.;
BYU 1st - NIX-CLARK out at first p to 2b. WHITELEY singled to third
base. QUIOCHO struck out swinging. SNOW singled through the left side, advanced
to second, advanced to third on the throw; WHITELEY advanced to third, scored
on a throwing error by 2b, unearned. URINCHO flied out to rf. 1 run, 2 hits,
1 error, 1 LOB.
Purdue 1st - Hall, A. walked. Barr, A. out at first 3b to 2b, SAC, bunt;
Hall, A. advanced to second. Curtis, C. doubled to right center; Hall, A.
advanced to third. Mitchell, K. tripled to right field, 2 RBI; Curtis, C.
scored; Hall, A. scored. Haupert, K. struck out looking. Peterson, E. struck
out looking. 2 runs, 2 hits, 0 errors, 1 LOB.
BYU 2nd - NORTON grounded out to p. RAMIREZ singled up the middle. HOCH
reached on a fielder's choice; RAMIREZ out at second 3b to 2b. PLATT struck out
looking. 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 1 LOB.
Purdue 2nd - Zaworski, C. grounded out to c unassisted. Trauger, C.
struck out looking. Miller, K. grounded out to ss. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors,
0 LOB.
BYU 3rd - NIX-CLARK singled to left field. WHITELEY singled to
shortstop; NIX-CLARK advanced to second. QUIOCHO reached on a fielder's choice;
WHITELEY out at second ss to 2b; NIX-CLARK advanced to third. SNOW singled down
the lf line, RBI; QUIOCHO advanced to second; NIX-CLARK scored. URINCHO singled
to right field; SNOW advanced to second; QUIOCHO advanced to third. NORTON
homered to left center, 4 RBI; URINCHO scored; SNOW scored; QUIOCHO scored.
RAMIREZ singled to shortstop. HOCH struck out swinging. PLATT grounded out to
2b. 5 runs, 6 hits, 0 errors, 1 LOB.
Purdue 3rd - Hall, A. struck out swinging. Barr, A. struck out looking.
Curtis, C. flied out to rf. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB.
BYU 4th - NIX-CLARK singled through the left side. WHITELEY walked;
NIX-CLARK advanced to second. QUIOCHO lined into double play ss unassisted;
NIX-CLARK out on the play. SNOW grounded out to ss. 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors,
1 LOB.
Purdue 4th - Mitchell, K. struck out swinging. Haupert, K. walked.
Peterson, E. singled to right field; Haupert, K. advanced to second. Zaworski,
C. out at first p to 2b, SAC, bunt; Peterson, E. advanced to second; Haupert,
K. advanced to third. Johnson, D. pinch hit for Trauger, C.. Johnson, D.
grounded out to ss. 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 2 LOB.
BYU 5th - Trauger, C. to cf for Johnson, D.. URINCHO doubled to right
center. ANDERSON pinch ran for URINCHO. NORTON grounded out to ss. RAMIREZ
struck out looking. HOCH singled to left field, RBI; ANDERSON scored. PLATT
reached on a fielder's choice; HOCH advanced to second. NIX-CLARK struck out
swinging. 1 run, 2 hits, 0 errors, 2 LOB.
Purdue 5th - URINCHO to 1b for ANDERSON. Miller, K. grounded out to 3b.
Hall, A. singled down the lf line. Barr, A. singled to left center; Hall, A.
advanced to second. Curtis, C. grounded into double play 3b to 1b; Hall, A. out
on the play. 0 runs, 2 hits, 0 errors, 1 LOB.
BYU 6th - WHITELEY singled through the left side. QUIOCHO reached on an
error by 1b; WHITELEY out at second 1b to ss. QUIOCHO stole second. SNOW flied
out to rf; QUIOCHO advanced to third. URINCHO grounded out to p. 0 runs, 1
hit, 1 error, 1 LOB.
Purdue 6th - Mitchell, K. flied out to rf. Haupert, K. lined out to ss.
Peterson, E. grounded out to ss. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB.
BYU 7th - NORTON singled to right field, advanced to second on an error
by rf, advanced to third. GONZALES pinch ran for NORTON. RAMIREZ singled down
the rf line, RBI; GONZALES scored. HOCH out at first 3b to 2b, SAC, bunt;
RAMIREZ advanced to second. PLATT flied out to rf; RAMIREZ advanced to third.
NIX-CLARK hit by pitch. WHITELEY grounded out to 1b unassisted. 1 run, 2
hits, 1 error, 2 LOB.
Purdue 7th - NORTON to ss for GONZALES. Zaworski, C. flied out to cf.
Trauger, C. fouled out to 3b. Miller, K. grounded out to p. 0 runs, 0 hits,
0 errors, 0 LOB.
Penn State vs BYU
                Mar 10, 2007 at Fresno, Calif. (Bulldog Diamond)
Penn State 17 (8-9)
Player                    AB  R  H RBI BB SO PO  A LOB
------------------------------------------------------
Acunto, Jen ss...........  5  2  1  0   0  0  1  3   2
Griffith, Ashley lf......  2  2  1  1   1  0  1  0   0
 Wong, Kimi ph...........  1  0  0  0   0  0  0  0   3
Esparza, Ashley p........  4  2  2  0   0  1  0  2   0
 Lucas, Kari pr..........  0  1  0  0   0  0  0  0   0
Kinley, Danielle cf......  4  2  3  4   0  0  3  0   0
Haines, Hollee dp/c......  4  1  2  2   0  0  4  0   1
Reynolds, Jenn 1b/dp.....  4  2  2  3   0  1  2  0   0
Zielinski, Kayce 3b......  3  2  1  0   1  0  0  1   0
Madura, Shana c/dp.......  1  1  0  1   1  0  0  0   0
 Hovanec, Sam 1b.........  1  0  0  0   1  1  2  0   0
Wolfer, Meghan rf........  3  1  2  2   0  0  0  0   0
 Noll, Danielle ph.......  1  0  1  1   0  0  0  0   0
Bautista, Rebecca 2b/pr..  0  1  0  0   0  0  2  2   0
Totals................... 33 17 15 14   4  3 15  8   6
BYU 4 (12-8)
Player                    AB  R  H RBI BB SO PO  A LOB
------------------------------------------------------
NIX-CLARK, Cortney c.....  2  0  1  0   1  0  2  2   0
WHITELEY, Jennifer lf/1b.  3  1  2  0   0  0  4  0   1
QUIOCHO, Angeline 3b.....  2  0  0  0   1  1  0  2   1
SNOW, Emi rf.............  1  0  0  1   0  0  0  0   0
 ANDERSON, Jana ph.......  1  0  0  0   0  0  0  0   0
URINCHO, Daniela 1b......  2  0  0  0   0  0  3  0   1
 PLATT, Stephanie lf.....  1  1  1  0   0  0  0  0   0
NORTON, Jodi ss..........  1  1  1  1   1  0  1  1   0
 JENKINS, Shaylyn ph.....  1  0  0  0   0  1  0  0   0
RAMIREZ, Andrea dp.......  3  0  1  0   0  0  0  0   0
HOCH, Tracee 2b..........  3  1  1  1   0  1  4  2   4
GONZALES, Monica cf......  2  0  0  0   0  0  1  0   0
ZINANTI, Christie p......  0  0  0  0   0  0  0  1   0
 GWYN, Christina p.......  0  0  0  0   0  0  0  1   0
Totals................... 22  4  7  3   3  3 15  9   7
Score by Innings                  R  H  E
-----------------------------------------
Penn State.......... (10)00 34 - 17 15  1
BYU................. 1   20 01 -  4  7  4
-----------------------------------------
E - Acunto(9); NIX-CLARK(3); QUIOCHO 2(7); HOCH(5). LOB - Lions 6; Cougars
7. 2B - Kinley(6); Reynolds(4); PLATT(2). HR - NORTON(5); HOCH(4). SH -
Griffith(4). SF - SNOW(1).
Penn State             IP  H  R ER BB SO AB BF
-----------------------------------------------
Esparza, Ashley.....  5.0  7  4  3  3  3 22 26
BYU                    IP  H  R ER BB SO AB BF
-----------------------------------------------
ZINANTI, Christie...  2.1  7  8  4  2  1 16 19
GWYN, Christina.....  2.2  8  9  5  2  2 17 19
Win - Esparza (2-3).  Loss - ZINANTI (3-4).  Save - None.
WP - Esparza(5). Inherited runners/scored: ZINANTI 2/1; GWYN 2/2.
Umpires - HP: Dennis Wren  1B: Lisa Paull  3B: Jim Kane
Start: 2:00 PM   Time: 1:58   Attendance:
Game notes:
ID-531317
GWYN faced 4 batters in the 4th.
Game: 3103
Play-by-Play
Score by Innings                  R  H  E
-----------------------------------------
Penn State.......... (10)00 34 - 17 15  1
BYU................. 1   20 01 -  4  7  4
-----------------------------------------
Penn State starters: 28/ss Acunto; 22/lf Griffith; 0/p Esparza; 35/cf Kinley;
29/dp Haines; 16/1b Reynolds; 24/3b Zielinski; 23/c Madura; 25/rf Wolfer; 12/2b
Bautista;
BYU starters: 10/c NIX-CLARK; 3/lf WHITELEY; 33/3b QUIOCHO; 18/rf SNOW; 22/1b
URINCHO; 8/ss NORTON; 31/dp RAMIREZ; 4/2b HOCH; 24/cf GONZALES; 14/p ZINANTI;
Penn State 1st - Acunto singled to left field. Griffith out at first p
to 2b, SAC, bunt; Acunto advanced to second. Esparza singled to center field;
Acunto advanced to third. Kinley singled through the right side, RBI; Esparza
advanced to second; Acunto scored. Haines to c. Madura to dp. Haines singled
down the lf line, RBI; Kinley advanced to second; Esparza scored. GWYN to p for
ZINANTI. Reynolds singled to left field, RBI; Haines advanced to second; Kinley
scored. Bautista pinch ran for Haines. Haines to dp for Bautista. Zielinski
walked; Reynolds advanced to second; Bautista advanced to third. Madura walked,
RBI; Zielinski advanced to second; Reynolds advanced to third; Bautista scored.
Wolfer singled up the middle, RBI; Madura advanced to second; Zielinski
advanced to third; Reynolds scored. Acunto reached on a fielder's choice;
Wolfer advanced to second; Madura advanced to third; Zielinski scored on an
error by c, unearned. Griffith singled to left field, RBI; Acunto advanced to
second; Wolfer advanced to third; Madura scored. Esparza struck out swinging.
Kinley doubled to left center, 3 RBI; Griffith scored, unearned; Acunto scored,
unearned; Wolfer scored, unearned. Haines to c for Bautista. Bautista to 2b for
Haines. Haines grounded out to 1b unassisted. 10 runs, 8 hits, 1 error, 1
LOB.
BYU 1st - NIX-CLARK walked. WHITELEY singled, bunt; NIX-CLARK advanced
to second. WHITELEY advanced to second on a wild pitch; NIX-CLARK advanced to
third on a wild pitch. QUIOCHO reached on a fielder's choice; WHITELEY advanced
to third; NIX-CLARK out at home 3b to c. SNOW flied out to lf, SAC, RBI;
QUIOCHO advanced to second; WHITELEY scored. URINCHO flied out to cf. 1 run,
1 hit, 0 errors, 1 LOB.
Penn State 2nd - Reynolds struck out looking. Zielinski grounded out to
2b. Madura flied out to cf. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB.
BYU 2nd - NORTON homered to left center, RBI. RAMIREZ flied out to cf.
HOCH homered to center field, RBI. GONZALES grounded out to 2b. NIX-CLARK
singled to shortstop. WHITELEY grounded out to 2b. 2 runs, 3 hits, 0 errors,
1 LOB.
Penn State 3rd - Wolfer out at first c to 2b, bunt. Acunto grounded out
to 3b. Griffith out at first p to 2b. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB.
BYU 3rd - Reynolds to dp. Hovanec to 1b for Madura. QUIOCHO walked. SNOW
reached on a fielder's choice; QUIOCHO out at second ss to 2b. URINCHO reached
on a fielder's choice; SNOW out at second p to ss. NORTON walked; URINCHO
advanced to second. RAMIREZ singled to left field; NORTON advanced to second;
URINCHO advanced to third. HOCH flied out to cf. 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 3
LOB.
Penn State 4th - Esparza singled up the middle. Lucas pinch ran for
Esparza. Kinley singled through the right side; Lucas advanced to second.
Haines singled to left field; Kinley advanced to second; Lucas advanced to
third. WHITELEY to 1b. PLATT to lf for URINCHO. Reynolds doubled down the rf
line, 2 RBI; Haines advanced to third; Kinley scored; Lucas scored. ZINANTI to
p for GWYN. Zielinski grounded out to ss. Hovanec struck out swinging, out at
first c to 1b. Wolfer singled up the middle, RBI; Reynolds advanced to third;
Haines scored. Acunto flied out to ss. 3 runs, 5 hits, 0 errors, 2 LOB.
BYU 4th - Esparza to p for Lucas. GONZALES grounded out to ss. NIX-CLARK
grounded out to ss. WHITELEY singled, bunt. QUIOCHO struck out looking. 0
runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 1 LOB.
Penn State 5th - Griffith walked. Esparza reached on an error by 2b;
Griffith advanced to second. Kinley grounded out to 3b; Esparza advanced to
second; Griffith advanced to third. Haines grounded out to 2b unassisted, RBI;
Esparza advanced to third; Griffith scored, unearned. Reynolds reached on an
error by 3b; Esparza scored, unearned. Zielinski singled to left field;
Reynolds advanced to second. Hovanec walked; Zielinski advanced to second;
Reynolds advanced to third. Noll pinch hit for Wolfer. Noll singled to left
field, RBI; Hovanec advanced to second; Zielinski advanced to third; Reynolds
scored, unearned. Acunto reached on an error by 3b; Noll advanced to second;
Hovanec advanced to third; Zielinski scored, unearned. Wong pinch hit for
Griffith. Wong grounded out to 2b. 4 runs, 2 hits, 3 errors, 3 LOB.
BYU 5th - Griffith to lf for Wong. Wolfer to rf for Noll. ANDERSON pinch
hit for SNOW. ANDERSON out at first p to 2b. PLATT doubled to center field.
JENKINS pinch hit for NORTON. JENKINS struck out swinging. RAMIREZ reached on
an error by ss; PLATT scored, unearned. HOCH struck out swinging. 1 run, 1
hit, 1 error, 1 LOB.