March 14, 2010

Colorado State vs. Georgetown | Colorado State vs. Fresno State

By Tawny Dennis
Athletic Media Relations

FRESNO, Calif. - Colorado State concluded the Bayer CropScience Classic on Sunday against Georgetown and tournament-host Fresno State. The Rams defeated the Hoyas, 9-8, in eight innings followed by a 3-2 victory over the Bulldogs.

"I am extremely proud of our kids after their performance this weekend," Head Coach Mary Yori said. "We played hard all weekend and won some close games against some tough opponents."

Georgetown (6-12) jumped out to an early 1-0 lead in the first inning and added two runs in the third to grab a 3-0 advantage over the Rams. Kelsie Hanson tripled down the right field line with one out in the inning and scored when teammate Mackensey Carter doubled to left field. Callie Eward entered the game to pinch run for Carter and scored when Kristi Preuss reached on a fielder's choice.

The Rams (16-8) answered in the bottom half of the inning after sophomore Jenna Krogh singled and scored when sophomore Christine Thomsen doubled, but was thrown out at second on the play. Penland followed Thomsen with a double to left field. Junior Ivory Allen pinch ran for Penland and scored when senior Allison Majam tripled to right field to cut Georgetown's lead to 3-2.

The Hoyas extended their lead to 4-2 in the following frame, but Colorado State answered with five runs in the bottom half of the sixth to grab a 7-4 lead.

Senior Ashley Munoz led off the sixth with a single to shortstop. Sophomore Amilia Stephens pinch ran for Munoz and advanced to third after senior Robyn Mask and freshman Brianna Donahue recorded back-to-back sacrifice bunts. Junior Caitlan Stem singled to center field to plate Stephens and cut Georgetown's lead to 4-3.

The Hoyas tied the game in the top of the seventh, scoring three runs on three hits. Samantha Peters scored the first run for Georgetown in the inning after she reached on an error by Stem and scored when Shikara Lowe doubled down the right field line. Demetria Cipriano tied the game at 3-3 when she hit a two-RBI single to right field.

Cara Savarese was placed on second base to begin the eighth and scored when Peters singled to give the Hoyas an 8-7 lead.

Senior Sarah Sullivan was placed on second in the bottom of the eighth and advanced to third when Stem singled to center field. Sullivan scored the tying run on a passed ball. Stem scored the game-winning run when Krogh singled to left center to give the Rams their third straight extra-inning victory at the tournament.

Sophomore Dani Chaplin started in the circle for Colorado State, throwing 2.1 innings before being relieved by Penland. Penland tossed 3.2 innings before sophomore Kelli Eubanks entered the game for the final two frames and recorded her 11th victory of the season.

In the second game of the day, Fresno State grabbed a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the second inning. Courtney Moore walked to lead off the inning and scored the game's first run when teammate Nicole Angene doubled center field.

The Bulldogs (15-9) added to their lead in the following inning, scoring a run on two hits, but Colorado State tied the game at 2-2 in the top of the fourth. Krogh and Thomsen recorded back-to-back singles to lead off the inning and advanced when Penland singled to load the bases. Munoz recorded a sacrifice fly to give the Rams' their first run of the game. Penland scored Colorado State's second run when Mask reached on an error by Fresno State's shortstop.

Thomsen recorded her fifth RBI of the day in the top of the fifth inning, and gave Colorado State a 3-2 advantage, when she singled to plate Donahue. Donahue walked to lead off the inning and advanced to third when Krogh singled to center field.

Eubanks started in the circle for the Rams and tossed her 10th complete game of the season. She shut the Fresno State offense down in the final three innings and secured Colorado State's fourth straight victory and 16th overall.

The Rams return to the diamond on Tuesday at 4 p.m. MT against Princeton in Fresno, Calif., before heading to Sacramento, Calif., on Thursday to face Sacramento State at 3 p.m. MT. The Capital Classic begins on Friday with the Rams scheduled to face Nevada twice at the tournament, along with Utah State and tournament-host Sacramento State.