May 8, 2009
Contact: Brian McCann
PENDLETON, Ind. - Amanda Houchin and Danielle Young each hit homeruns and Amanda Macenko struck out 11 to tie the school record for wins in a season as Cleveland State blasted Wright State, 8-2, in its first game of the second day of the Horizon League Championship.
The Vikings (33-15), winners of seven straight, advance to play top-seeded UIC tonight (Friday) at approximately 9:00 p.m.
"Today's game is a great example of how focused we are right now as a team," CSU head coach Angie Nicholson said. "We came into this tournament with a goal of going to the NCAA Tournament and we weren't going to let anything stand in our way. We approached this game in a very business-like manner and it really showed.
"We didn't get a lot of hits early but we made the most of our base-runners. Christa draws a walk and scores on a homerun in the first. Shay (Adams) gets hit by a pitch and comes around to score on another homerun. When we finally did string some hits together, we put together a big inning."
For the second straight game, the Vikings jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first when Amanda Houchin blasted a two-run homer to left field, scoring Christa Coppus who had walked to lead off the game. It was the second homerun of the tourney for Houchin, and eighth of the year.
The Vikings extended their lead to 4-0 in the second when Danielle Young hit a line drive homerun over the fence in right center, scoring Shalyn Young, who had reached by being hit by a pitch.
After the Vikins set down six of the first seven batters of the game, including five by strikeout, Wright State got to Amanda Macenko in the third inning. Lindsay Barrett opened the inning with a single to the hole at short and China Frost followed with a slap single past a charging Houchin and into left field. Barrett advanced to third and Jamie Perkins took over at first on a fielder's choice ground ball that forced Frost at second.
Good fortune was on the side of the Raiders when Melanie Haney's comebacker to the mound glanced off Macenko's glove and was redirected towards the gap between first and second for a single, scoring Barrett. Kristen Bradshaw walked to load the bases, but Macenko knuckled down, getting Allison Cox to foul out to first and Justine Shilt to hit a ground ball to short to end the inning.
Wright State closed to within 4-2 in the fifth when Perkins led off the frame with her ninth homerun of the season, a line drive to left that easily cleared the 200 foot sign.
The Raiders appeared to extend the rally when Haney followed with a line drive single down the right field line but Viking first baseman Mimi Mahon stymied the rally when she lunged towards the line to catch a line drive off the bat of Bradshaw and then tagged the bag in the same motion for the double play.
CSU broke the game open in the bottom of the sixth when they strung together four hits, a hit batter and an error to score four runs to take an 8-2 advantage.
Mimi Mahon opened the frame by being safe on fielding error. Alicia Nichols pinch ran, coming around to score when Natalie DeMatteis doubled to the gap in right center. After a ground out moved DeMatteis to third, Katelyn Ciminelli pinch hit and was hit by a pitch. Danielle Young compleyed a three-for-three afternoon by lining a single to left to score DeMatteis for her third RBI of the game.
A Christa Coppus double plated Ciminelli and Young scored on a single by Houching, giving CSU an 8-2 advantage.
Macenko made short work of things in the seventh, striking out pinch-hitters Malerie Klingler and Katie Kine before inducing Perkins to pop out to second to end the game.
Macenko went the distance, allowing two runs on five hits, striking out 11 with two walks to improve to 26-11 on the year. She tied her own school record for wins in a season, a mark she has set all three seasons as a Viking.
The Vikings have had just 12 hits in the two tourney games, but five have been homeruns with three more being doubles.
