Comeback Bid Falls Short Against Defending League Champion

Posted: Mar 25, 2012

Box Score

Follow CSU on TWITTER
Follow CSU Softball on TWITTER
CSU Athletics on YouTube

CHICAGO, Ill. - Cleveland State fought back from an early 3-0 deficit and was within one out of completing the comeback but a two-out double by UIC's Courtney Heeley in the 10th inning handed the Flames a 6-5 win in Sunday's (March 25) rubber match of the three-game series.

Cleveland State leaves Chicago with an 8-21 overall record and a 1-2 mark in Horizon League play. UIC evened its record at 14-14 and is 2-1 after the first weekend of league competition.

CSU starting pitcher Sara Shields - fresh off a complete game victory over UIC on Saturday - allowed a two-run homer to Coryn Schmit in the bottom of the first inning.

UIC scored a run in the third by capitalizing on poor CSU defense. Melissa Preish started the inning by reaching second on a two-base error in center field. The Flames manufactured a run by moving her over on a sacrifice bunt and brought her in on a sacrifice fly to left field.

The Vikings wouldn't go easily and evened the game at 3-3 in the top of the fourth.

Shields - one of two Vikings with multiple hits in the game - reached on a fielder's choice and scored. Salena Kauffman delivered the big blow with a two out single to center that plated Nena Doran and pinch runner Brittani Newsome.

Neither team scored after that point to force extra innings.

The Vikings scored when they had first crack in the eighth inning when Shields hit a solo home run - her second of the season.

UIC countered with a run in the home half of the eighth when the first two batters singled. A passed ball put both runners in scoring position and a sacrifice fly brought in Jacki Fletcher to tie the game again at 4-4.

CSU had one hit in the top of the inning and the Flames had two of their own in the ninth inning but neither team could push a run across.

With one out in the 10th inning, back-to-back doubles from Dara Toman and Andrea Nagy gave CSU the lead, but the two-out double by Heeley ended the game.

The inning started with two straight walks and a sacrifice that put both runners in scoring position. Shields struck the next batter out before surrendering the two-out double.

Shields took the loss to fall to 6-5. She worked 9.2 innings and allowed eight hits while issuing six walks. Five of the six runs she allowed were earned and she did strikeout three.

Devin Miller worked the first 9.1 innings and allowed five earned runs on 11 hits while sitting down nine Vikings. Ashley Hewett relieved her in the 10th and retired two batters to become the pitcher of record. She improved to 5-5.

Toman led the offense in the three-game series, finishing 5-for-9 (.556) with two doubles and a homer. She was walked three times. Shields was 4-for-12 (.333) with a double, homer and a pair of runs scored and Afton Allred was 3-for-10 (.300), including a double.

Shields came away from the weekend with a 1-1 record in her two starts and an ERA of 2.52 in 16.2 innings. She allowed six earned runs and had five strikeouts this weekend.

The Vikings will take a quick break from Horizon League play with a mid-week doubleheader at Robert Morris on Wednesday (March 28). Cleveland State then has a league series with Youngstown State that begins with a doubleheader on Friday (March 30).