Boilers start road trip
with loss
Three errors lead to three
unearned runs in 4-3 loss
The Purdue softball team began a long weekend road
trip with a 4-3 loss to Loyola-Chicago Thursday in Chicago.
The Boilers gave up three unearned runs by committing
three errors in the sixth and seventh innings. The gaffes in the last
inning were most crucial because Purdue held a 3-2 lead at the time.
The Boilers had held on to beat the Ramblers at
the Corpus Christi Bash By the Bay in Corpus Christi, Texas, earlier
this season. Purdue also beat Loyola 3-0 in the Boilermaker Invitational
earlier this season.
Loyola has now won seven of nine. There were two
outs and two runners on base when the winning run scored. Most people
in the crowd of 67 who made it to Loyola Softball Park went home happy.
Unhappy Purdue plays No. 15 Iowa in a doubleheader
at 2 p.m. today in Iowa City, Iowa.
"At Iowa, we will have to play our best to come
away with two wins," said Purdue coach Carol Bruggeman. "They are consistently
one of the best teams in our conference and we're looking forward to
the games. We know that the conference race is far from over and we'll
be using those games to try and get back on track."
The Boilers play Northwestern Saturday and Sunday
at 2 p.m. and 1 p.m., respectively, in Evanston, Ill.
"We're looking forward to getting on the field,"
said Bruggeman. "We've only had a few games the past two weeks and we're
anxious to play some more."
The game with Loyola was a make-up for the non-conference
doubleheader that was scheduled for Tuesday against Dayton. That game
was canceled due to unseasonably cold temperatures and snow flurries.
Shortstop Katie Crabtree went 1-for-1 Thursday
with a double and a walk. Last weekend against Penn State and Ohio State,
Crabtree was 7-14 with a double and two RBI.
Leighann Burke pitched 5.2 innings Thursday, allowing
three hits and two unearned runs. Nicole Crouse took the loss after
allowing two runs in the seventh.
Junior Meagan Dooley, the third starter, is sure
to see some innings this weekend. She owns a 1.73 ERA and an 8-6 record.
She has tallied 81.0 innings and allowed 79 hits with 34 runs, 18 walks
and 44 strikeouts. Dooley has also thrown one shutout and two complete
games.
She will have a lot of talent to face in the Iowa
lineup. The Hawkeyes are 30-9 on the year and are tied for second in
the Big Ten with a 7-3 mark. Iowa comes off a win over Western Illinois
on Tuesday after losing both games against Illinois over the weekend.
Prior to those losses, they held a seven-game win streak and have won
17 of their last 20 games. The Hawkeyes own a team batting average of
.262 and a team ERA of 0.90 in 39 games.
Leading the way for Iowa at the plate is Katy Jendrzejewski
with a .369 batting average and 11 runs in 38 hits, including six doubles,
five home runs and 17 RBI. Jendrzejewski is currently ranked fourth
in the Big Ten for batting average and is third in slugging percentage,
just above Crabtree in fourth place.
On the mound for the Hawkeyes is Kristi Hanks with
a 0.62 ERA and a 24-5 record. She has allowed 91 hits, 31 runs and 42
walks and has struck out 140 in 158.2 innings. Hanks also recorded the
1-0 extra innings, shutout win over No. 3 California at the Capital
Classic in Sacramento, Calif.
"Northwestern is always a competitive team," said
Bruggeman. "Because (head coach) Sharon Drysdale is retiring at the
end of this year, they are really playing inspired softball. She's one
of the best in the game and especially in the Big Ten.
We're sorry to see her go, but we're going to go
up there and play our game and play to our strengths."
The Wildcats' leading batter is Erin Jancic with
a .333 batting average and 16 runs on 28 hits, including nine doubles,
one triple and 10 RBI.
On the mound for Northwestern, Laura Schwendimann
leads the staff with a 2.68 ERA and a 3-5 record. She has allowed 46
hits, 31 runs and 27 walks, while striking out 52 in 50.1 innings pitched.
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