March 10, 2011
ATHENS, Ga. - The Penn State softball team fell to the top-ranked Georgia Bulldogs, 8-0, on Thursday night at Turner Stadium.
Georgia (18-1) jumped out to an early 2-0 lead when Megan Wiggins scored from first on a wild pitch and Brianna Hesson hit a sacrifice fly to score another run.
Penn State (8-7) looked ready to eat into the lead when Lisa Akamine (Escondido, Calif.) singled with one out. Shannon Hutchinson (Sewell, N.J.) would pinch run and advance to second on a ground out, but the Nittany Lions couldn't score her from second base.
The Bulldogs would pad its lead in the third inning when a single and an error put runners on first and second with no outs. Taylor Schlopy hit a triple off the top of the wall to score both runners and give Georgia a four-run cushion. Schlopy would score on the ensuing flyout to left field to make it a 5-0 game.
The Nittany Lions' top of the third looked promising when Lauren Rossi (Yardley, Pa.) sent her first hit of the year past a diving Bulldog on the right side of the infield. Rossi would earn second base on an illegal pitch by starting pitcher Sarah McCloud before Mary Ostman (Northbrook, Ill.) sacrificed her to third. A sharp grounder and a strikeout culled the Penn State threat.
After a scoreless third for Georgia, the Bulldogs lashed out for three more when Schlopy lined a homer just over the right field wall for an eight-run advantage. Penn State attempted a comeback in the top of the fifth inning to stave off a run-rule game. Liz Presto (Bethlehem, Pa.) and Cassidy Bell (Bakersfield, Calif.) sandwiched walked around a strikeout before Lauren Yao (Los Angeles, Calif.) was to her last strike earning first base when she was plunked on the arm. Unfortunately, PSU couldn't muster a run after a ground out and the game ended in Georgia's favor.
Penn State and Georgia elected to add the game Thursday morning to make up for rainouts lost earlier in the week. Georgia had two games in its own tournament washed out on Saturday, same as Penn State's matchups in the Buzz Classic in nearby Woodstock, Ga. While UGA didn't have mid-week games, the Lions had two games rained out at Auburn Wednesday night, facilitating the need for an extra game to be played.
Penn State returns to its regularly scheduled events when it participates in the SpringHill Suites Buckhead Classic hosted by Georgia Tech at Mewborn Field. The Nittany Lions take on Bowling Green at 2:00 p.m. before a 7:00 p.m. showdown with Georgia State. All Nittany Lion games will have live stats coverage through GameTracker as well as commentary and analysis on Twitter (www.twitter.com/PSULionSoftball).
--NITTANY LIONS--