March 1, 2008
Box Score
PANTHERSVILLE, Ga.--Pitcher Brittany Matthews struck out 13 and Jacki Warren connected for a third inning grand slam to lead Kennesaw State to a, 7-2, win over the Evansville Purple Aces at the Georgia State Spring Showdown on Saturday afternoon.
Trailing 1-0 after allowing a run in the second, the Owls (12-4) took advantage of miscues by the Purple Aces to take the lead. Lyndsay McCurry started the inning by striking out but reaching first thanks to a wild pitch. After McCurry's 11th stolen base of the year, Jordan Hackett reached base on a dropped fly ball in right. With one out in the inning, Jessica Cross was hit by a pitch to load the bases.
That set the stage for Warren's heroics. On the seventh pitch of the at-bat, Warren connected for a blast over the fence in left for a grand slam, giving the Owls a 4-1 advantage.
Evansville (8-6) scored a run in the third but the Owls came back with a run of their own in the fourth. With one out and runners on first and second, Jordan Hackett lifted a pop into shallow left that was mishandled by the Evansville shortstop. Pinch runner Erica Joseph came home to score from second, but McCurry was thrown out at second in a force play. The fielder's choice resulted in Hackett's second RBI of the season, giving the Owls a 5-2 lead.
Three consecutive doubles enabled KSU to plate a pair of insurance runs in the sixth. Amanda Malcom, Laura Stallings and Jenna Closner each doubled, with Stallings and Closner getting RBIs to make the score 7-2.
That was more than enough support for Matthews (9-1). Matthews recorded her 100th strikeout of the season in the first inning, finishing with 80 of her 113 pitches going for strikes.
The Owls will return to action later this afternoon at the Spring Showdown when Kennesaw State is matched up against Western Carolina. First pitch is tentatively scheduled for 4:45 p.m.
