April 3, 2005
SANTA CLARA, Calif. - Junior pitcher Liz Courter went 4-for-4 with an RBI single in the top of the seventh to lift the Santa Clara University softball team to a 5-4 victory against Sacramento State in continuing Pacific Coast Softball Conference action this afternoon at Marsalli Park. She earned her 10th win in the circle while striking out six in the all-around performance.
Home runs by senior catcher Daisy Mettlach and junior second baseman Jenny Brown led Santa Clara to a 3-0 win the second game. The Broncos are now 20-17 overall, 3-1 in league play, marking the fourth consecutive season the program has reached the 20-win plateau. The Hornets' record moves to 18-16, 1-3.
The Broncos posted 13 hits in the opener, with an additional strong performance from junior short stop Shannon Linerud, who went 3-for-4 with three RBIs and two runs scored. Sacramento State posted eight hits, and was led by outfielders Lesley Mayhorn and Lindy Winkler, who each posted two.
In the first game, Brown started the Broncos' offense with a one-out single in the third. She stole second and advanced to third on Vanessa Werner's sacrifice bunt. Linerud drove Brown in with a single down the third base line that touched off the glove of diving Hornet Amy Hillel.
In accordance to PCSC rules, Sacramento State was the designated home team for today's contests. The Hornets responded in the bottom half of the third with three runs, in part to back-to-back RBI hits from Mayhorn and Winkler.
Santa Clara tied the game with Linerud's two-run home run to left field in the top of the fifth. The blast marked Linerud's first of the season and second in her career.
Once again, Sacramento State responded in its half of the inning, pushing ahead by one run in the bottom of the fifth. The Hornets started with Winkler's second double of the contest. She advanced to third on a Bronco error and scored one out later.
The back-and-forth game continued, with Santa Clara once again tying the contest. Courter and sophomore first baseman Valerie Mock posted consecutive singles and advanced into scoring position one out later after sophomore outfielder Angela Kabanuck reached base on balls. Brown also walked, bringing home Courter.
Sacramento State loaded the bases with two outs in the seventh, but was unable to keep the rally alive. Brianne Ferguson started for the Hornets, striking out five in five innings.
In the second game, Mettlach led off the fifth with her second home run of the season, a shot over the right field fence. Brown followed two outs later with her own homer, this one over left to mark her third of the year. Freshman third baseman Sabrina Franks continued the offensive momentum with a double, and was brought home by Linerud's RBI single to right center.
The Broncos finished with seven hits and freshman Jerrica Castagno earned her sixth win of the season. Nikki Cinque took both losses for Sacramento State and is now 8-6.
Santa Clara will now hit the road for seven straight games in the Pacific Northwest, beginning with continuing PCSC action against Portland State on April 9 and 10. The Broncos recently added a tripleheader against Pac-10 schools Oregon and Oregon State on April 11, due to rainy March weather that cancelled other contests. Santa Clara returns home to Marsalli Park on April 13 with a non-conference doubleheader against Cal Poly at 1 p.m.
