Cougars Start NCAAs With Shutout

PROVO -- BYU started the 2007 NCAA Tournament in Provo, Utah, with a 9-0 shutout against the Cal Poly Mustangs Thursday afternoon at Miller Park, giving Coach Gordon Eakin his 200th career win.

"Seems like I just started yesterday," Eakin said. "It feels really good. I'll take 200 more."

Christie Zinanti got her 20th win of the season with the Mustang shutout. Zinanti gave up four hits in five innings, facing 22 batters.

"My team helped me out," Zinanti said. "I love pitching with runs behind me."

The team backed its pitcher up with a 14-hit performance, including two solo home runs.

Lead-off batter Cortney Nix-Clark got the Cougars started in the top of the first inning with a solo homerun, the second time this season she has led off a game with a deep shot. BYU rallied after the bomb, scoring a total of six runs off of five hits in the first inning.

Andrea Ramirez doubled down the left field line to bring in two RBI. With two outs in the first Monica Gonzales brought in runners from first and second when she doubled down the left field line.

Cal Poly got its first hit in the bottom of the third inning when Melissa Pura singled to right field followed by another single from Sarah Iwata. Pura was called out on runner interference, and Iwata was left on base.

BYU continued to put runs on the board while Cal Poly remained scoreless. Dani Urincho-Snow hit a solo homerun in the third inning to bring the Cougar lead to 7-0 after the third and continue BYU's record-setting homerun year with the team's 86th.

Four singles in the fourth inning brought in two more Cougar runs. Ramirez claimed two additional RBI when she brought in Jennifer Whitely and Jodi Norton with a single to right field. Cal Poly remained scoreless through the fourth inning.

In the top of the fifth inning BYU got two more singles, but both runners were left on base. In the bottom of the fifth Pura got her second hit of the day and Cal Poly's fourth, but Krysten Cary hit into a double play to end the game after five innings.

BYU continues tournament play Friday at 12 p.m. against No. 7 Arizona State, 2-1 winners over Southern Utah in the early game Thursday..

"ASU is ranked seventh, and they deserve that ranking," Eakin said. "We have to be aggressive and stay aggressive. That is what we do. We'll live and die by being aggressive tomorrow."

Brigham Young Univer at Cal Poly
                May 17, 2007 at Provo, Utah (Gail Miller Field)
Brigham Young Univer 9 (42-18)
Player                    AB  R  H RBI BB SO PO  A LOB
------------------------------------------------------
Cortney Nix-Clark c......  4  1  1  1   0  0  1  1   2
Jennifer Whiteley lf.....  4  2  2  0   0  0  0  0   0
Jodi Norton ss...........  4  1  3  0   0  1  2  4   0
Emi Snow rf..............  4  1  2  0   0  0  2  0   2
Andrea Ramirez dp........  3  1  2  4   0  0  0  0   1
Daniela Urincho 1b.......  3  1  2  2   0  0  6  0   0
Tracee Hoch 2b...........  2  1  0  0   0  1  1  1   0
Angeline Quiocho 3b......  3  1  0  0   0  0  2  1   2
Monica Gonzales cf.......  3  0  2  2   0  0  0  0   0
Christie Zinanti p.......  0  0  0  0   0  0  1  1   0
Totals................... 30  9 14  9   0  2 15  8   7
Cal Poly 0 (39-16)
Player                    AB  R  H RBI BB SO PO  A LOB
------------------------------------------------------
Lisa Modglin cf..........  2  0  0  0   1  0  0  0   3
Stephanie Tam 2b.........  3  0  0  0   0  0  3  1   0
Melissa Pura ss..........  3  0  2  0   0  0  2  4   0
Krysten Cary 1b..........  3  0  1  0   0  0  3  0   0
Sarah Iwata dp...........  2  0  0  0   0  0  0  0   2
Jenna Maiden rf..........  2  0  0  0   0  0  3  0   2
Jackie Gehrke-Jones c....  1  0  0  0   0  0  2  0   0
Cristin Lee 3b...........  2  0  0  0   0  0  1  0   0
Kelly Comstock lf........  2  0  1  0   0  1  1  0   0
Robyn Kontra p...........  0  0  0  0   0  0  0  0   0
 Emily Hively p..........  0  0  0  0   0  0  0  1   0
Totals................... 20  0  4  0   1  1 15  6   7
Score by Innings                R  H  E
---------------------------------------
Brigham Young Univer 601 200 -  9 14  2
Cal Poly............ 000 00X -  0  4  2
---------------------------------------
E - NIX-CLARK; ZINANTI; Tam; Comstock. DP - BYU Cougars 1. LOB - BYU Cougars
7; Cal Poly 7. 2B - RAMIREZ. HR - NIX-CLARK; URINCHO. HBP - HOCH;
Gehrke-Jones.
Brigham Young Univer   IP  H  R ER BB SO AB BF
-----------------------------------------------
Christie Zinanti....  5.0  4  0  0  1  1 20 22
Cal Poly               IP  H  R ER BB SO AB BF
-----------------------------------------------
Robyn Kontra........  0.1  4  5  3  0  1  6  6
Emily Hively........  4.2 10  4  3  0  1 24 25
Win - ZINANTI (20-8).  Loss - Kontra (12-7).  Save - None.
HBP - by Hively (HOCH); by ZINANTI (Gehrke-Jones).
Umpires - HP: Russ Pemberton  1B: Jeff Sloan  3B: Jana Tidwell
Start: 3 p.m.   Time: 1:39   Attendance: 425
Game notes:
200th victory for BYU coach Gordon Eakin
Game: BY-CP3
Play-by-Play
Score by Innings                R  H  E
---------------------------------------
Brigham Young Univer 601 200 -  9 14  2
Cal Poly............ 000 00X -  0  4  2
---------------------------------------
Brigham Young Univer starters: 10/c NIX-CLARK; 3/lf WHITELEY; 8/ss NORTON;
18/rf SNOW; 31/dp RAMIREZ; 22/1b URINCHO; 4/2b HOCH; 33/3b QUIOCHO; 24/cf
GONZALES; 14/p ZINANTI;
Cal Poly starters: 22/cf Modglin; 11/2b Tam; 10/ss Pura; 33/1b Cary; 6/dp
Iwata; 16/rf Maiden; 14/c Gehrke-Jones; 23/3b Lee; 9/lf Comstock; 18/p Kontra;
Brigham Young Univer 1st - NIX-CLARK homered, RBI. WHITELEY reached on
an error by 2b. NORTON struck out looking. SNOW singled, advanced to second on
the throw; WHITELEY advanced to third. RAMIREZ doubled, 2 RBI; SNOW scored;
WHITELEY scored, unearned. URINCHO singled, RBI; RAMIREZ scored. Hively to p
for Kontra. HOCH hit by pitch; URINCHO advanced to second. QUIOCHO reached on a
fielder's choice; HOCH advanced to second; URINCHO out at third ss to 3b.
GONZALES singled, advanced to second on an error by lf, 2 RBI; QUIOCHO scored,
unearned; HOCH scored, unearned. NIX-CLARK flied out to lf. 6 runs, 5 hits,
2 errors, 1 LOB.
Cal Poly 1st - Modglin walked. Tam reached on an error by c; Modglin
advanced to second. Pura out at first c to 2b; Tam advanced to second; Modglin
advanced to third. Cary grounded out to ss. Iwata grounded out to ss. 0
runs, 0 hits, 1 error, 2 LOB.
Brigham Young Univer 2nd - WHITELEY grounded out to ss. NORTON singled.
SNOW reached on a fielder's choice; NORTON out at second p to ss. RAMIREZ flied
out to rf. 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 1 LOB.
Cal Poly 2nd - Maiden lined out to p. Gehrke-Jones hit by pitch. Lee
reached on a fielder's choice; Gehrke-Jones advanced to second on an error by
p. Comstock struck out swinging. Modglin reached on a fielder's choice; Lee
advanced to second; Gehrke-Jones out at second ss unassisted. 0 runs, 0
hits, 1 error, 2 LOB.
Brigham Young Univer 3rd - URINCHO homered, RBI. HOCH struck out
swinging. QUIOCHO flied out to rf. GONZALES singled. NIX-CLARK reached on a
fielder's choice; GONZALES out at second 2b unassisted. 1 run, 2 hits, 0
errors, 1 LOB.
Cal Poly 3rd - Tam grounded out to 2b. Pura singled. Cary singled; Pura
advanced to second. Iwata reached on a fielder's choice; Cary advanced to
second; Pura out at third ss to 3b. Maiden flied out to rf. 0 runs, 2 hits,
0 errors, 2 LOB.
Brigham Young Univer 4th - WHITELEY singled. NORTON singled; WHITELEY
advanced to second. SNOW singled; NORTON advanced to second; WHITELEY advanced
to third. RAMIREZ singled, 2 RBI; SNOW advanced to second; NORTON scored;
WHITELEY scored. URINCHO lined out to ss. HOCH popped up to 2b. QUIOCHO out at
first ss to 2b. 2 runs, 4 hits, 0 errors, 2 LOB.
Cal Poly 4th - Gehrke-Jones grounded out to p. Lee lined out to 3b.
Comstock singled. Modglin flied out to rf. 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 1
LOB.
Brigham Young Univer 5th - GONZALES grounded out to ss. NIX-CLARK flied
out to rf. WHITELEY singled. NORTON singled; WHITELEY advanced to second. SNOW
grounded out to 2b. 0 runs, 2 hits, 0 errors, 2 LOB.
Cal Poly 5th - Tam grounded out to 3b. Pura singled. Cary hit into
double play ss to 1b; Pura out on the play. 0 runs, 1 hit, 0 errors, 0
LOB.
Brigham Young Univer 6th - 200th victory for BYU head coach Gordon
Eakin. 0 runs, 0 hits, 0 errors, 0 LOB.