UK's Lauren Johnson’s sacrifice fly in the ninth inning gave host No 14/14 Kentucky softball team to a 6-5 win over the University of Louisville Softball squad Wednesday night at John Cropp Stadium.
Louisville (16-21) will return to Ulmer Stadium to take on their third straight ranked opponent when No. 7/7 Florida State comes in for a four-game series in Louisville’s final home weekend of the regular season.
The Cards Carmyn Greenwood went 4-for-5 and first baseman Makayla Hurst drove in a pair of runs to lead the Cardinals as they outhit the Wildcats 10-9 in a back-and-forth game that featured three ties. UK never ledd until the bottom of the ninth.
It was Makayla Hurst who put Louisville on the scoreboard first, with abooming leadoff home run in the top of the second. The junior transfer took the first pitch she saw "fence, wall and that's not all" in right centerfield for her seventh home run of the season to give UofL a 1-0 lead.
Kentucky (31-10) answered in the bottom of the second behind Erin Coffel’s solo shot which tied things up at 1-1.
UofL struck for two more runs in the top of the third. Singles from Jenna Servi, Carmyn Greenwood and Maddy Newman loaded the bases. Staarting pitcher Taylor Roby’s fielder’s choice saw Greenwood out at second, but Servi crossed the plate to put Louisville back on top 2-1. A sacrifice fly off the bat of Hurst sent Newman home . The Cards had built the lead to 3-1.
The Wildcats countered again with an unearned run in the bottom of the third. An error allowed Miranda Stoddard to reach and she eventually crossed the plate on Tatum Spangler’s sacrifice fly, pulling Kentucky within a run at 3-2.
The Cards got the run back in the fourth when Charley Butler led off with a single and proceeded to steal second. Cassady Greenwood’s single put runners on the corners for Celene Funke’s sacrifice fly, making the score 4-2.
The fifth inning, though, brought two more runs for Cats.SEC ledcing hitter Kayla Kowalik doubled and scored on Rylea Smith’s RBI hit. Renee Abernathy’s sacrifice hit sent pinch runner Erica Thulen home to even the score at 4-4.
The Cards fought back. Catcher Rebecca Chung’s RBI single in the top of the seventh put Louisville in the lead again. Carmyn Greenwood got the frame started with her fourth hit of the game and advanced to second when Roby walked. That set up Chung, who belted a hit into centerfield to put her team back on top 5-4.
The Cards were three outs away from a "W".
But, Kentucky answered with a run in the bottom of the seventh when back-to-back doubles by Spangler and Johnson tied the game at 5-5. With the go-ahead run in scoring position, Louisville head coach Holly Aprile visited the circle and decided to bring in reliever Jennifer Leonhardt. The graduate transfer, who played her high school ball at Fern Creek, dealt back-to-back strikeouts to send the game to extra innings.
The score remained at 5-5 when neither team could produce a run in the eighth. UK shut down the UofL bats in the the of the ninth, as the temperatures plunged into the 30's and the Wildcats started the bottom of the ninth when Jaci Babbs reached on a bunt single.
Babbs went to third on a Kowalik’s hitto right field and that set up Johnson’s one-out sacrifice fly to deep center that Celene Funke caught -- but the Cardinal outfielder could not get the ball to home plate in time to catch the speedy Babbs, who tagged up and scored the winning run.
Leonhardt (2-7) took the loss, allowing just one earned run on three hits and striking out three in her 2.1 innings of relief of Roby. Roby allowed five runs, three of them earned, on six hits and struck out five in 6.1 innings.
Autumn Humes (15-5) picked up the win, allowing two earned runs on five hits and striking out five in 6.0 innings of relief. Kowalik was huge at the bat for UK going 3-for-5.
--sonja--
Louisville (16-21) will return to Ulmer Stadium to take on their third straight ranked opponent when No. 7/7 Florida State comes in for a four-game series in Louisville’s final home weekend of the regular season.
The Cards Carmyn Greenwood went 4-for-5 and first baseman Makayla Hurst drove in a pair of runs to lead the Cardinals as they outhit the Wildcats 10-9 in a back-and-forth game that featured three ties. UK never ledd until the bottom of the ninth.
It was Makayla Hurst who put Louisville on the scoreboard first, with abooming leadoff home run in the top of the second. The junior transfer took the first pitch she saw "fence, wall and that's not all" in right centerfield for her seventh home run of the season to give UofL a 1-0 lead.
Kentucky (31-10) answered in the bottom of the second behind Erin Coffel’s solo shot which tied things up at 1-1.
UofL struck for two more runs in the top of the third. Singles from Jenna Servi, Carmyn Greenwood and Maddy Newman loaded the bases. Staarting pitcher Taylor Roby’s fielder’s choice saw Greenwood out at second, but Servi crossed the plate to put Louisville back on top 2-1. A sacrifice fly off the bat of Hurst sent Newman home . The Cards had built the lead to 3-1.
The Wildcats countered again with an unearned run in the bottom of the third. An error allowed Miranda Stoddard to reach and she eventually crossed the plate on Tatum Spangler’s sacrifice fly, pulling Kentucky within a run at 3-2.
The Cards got the run back in the fourth when Charley Butler led off with a single and proceeded to steal second. Cassady Greenwood’s single put runners on the corners for Celene Funke’s sacrifice fly, making the score 4-2.
The fifth inning, though, brought two more runs for Cats.SEC ledcing hitter Kayla Kowalik doubled and scored on Rylea Smith’s RBI hit. Renee Abernathy’s sacrifice hit sent pinch runner Erica Thulen home to even the score at 4-4.
The Cards fought back. Catcher Rebecca Chung’s RBI single in the top of the seventh put Louisville in the lead again. Carmyn Greenwood got the frame started with her fourth hit of the game and advanced to second when Roby walked. That set up Chung, who belted a hit into centerfield to put her team back on top 5-4.
The Cards were three outs away from a "W".
But, Kentucky answered with a run in the bottom of the seventh when back-to-back doubles by Spangler and Johnson tied the game at 5-5. With the go-ahead run in scoring position, Louisville head coach Holly Aprile visited the circle and decided to bring in reliever Jennifer Leonhardt. The graduate transfer, who played her high school ball at Fern Creek, dealt back-to-back strikeouts to send the game to extra innings.
The score remained at 5-5 when neither team could produce a run in the eighth. UK shut down the UofL bats in the the of the ninth, as the temperatures plunged into the 30's and the Wildcats started the bottom of the ninth when Jaci Babbs reached on a bunt single.
Babbs went to third on a Kowalik’s hitto right field and that set up Johnson’s one-out sacrifice fly to deep center that Celene Funke caught -- but the Cardinal outfielder could not get the ball to home plate in time to catch the speedy Babbs, who tagged up and scored the winning run.
Leonhardt (2-7) took the loss, allowing just one earned run on three hits and striking out three in her 2.1 innings of relief of Roby. Roby allowed five runs, three of them earned, on six hits and struck out five in 6.1 innings.
Autumn Humes (15-5) picked up the win, allowing two earned runs on five hits and striking out five in 6.0 innings of relief. Kowalik was huge at the bat for UK going 3-for-5.
--sonja--
