Fresno State Athletics
Fresno State and Texas Tech Square Off in Championship Game
6/21/1999 12:00:00 AM | Softball
May 22, 1999
Fresno, Calif. -
Fresno State remained undefeated in NCAA regional play, coming from behind to defeat Texas Tech 3-1 Saturday afternoon. This regional contest between the lone two undefeated teams featured two home runs, one by the Raiders Paula Workman (second inning), the other, an inside the park home run, by Fresno States Lovieanne Jung (fourth inning).
Jung, who went 3-3 on the afternoon, scored in the bottom of the second, benefiting from a Texas Tech error as she advanced to second base and continued around the bases to score. Her inside the park home run came with one out in the fourth as Jung nailed a pitch to right field.
Alejandra Ronconcio scored the final Fresno State run in the bottom of the sixth after pinch running for Amanda Scott after she singled to lead off the inning. Scott pitched a complete game and gave up one earned run and registering seven strikeouts to put her record at 28-3.
Top-seeded Fresno State advances to the championship game Sunday at 1 p.m. against the winner of the 7:30 p.m. Saturday night game. Fifth seeded Texas Tech will play the winner of the #4 Pacific/#2 South Carolina game at 7:30 p.m. tonight. Pacific and South Carolina meet Saturday at 5 p.m.
Score by innings R H E Texas Tech 010 000 0 1 4 1 Fresno State 010 101 3 7 1
FRESNO STATE Coach Margie Wright
"Lovie (Jung) did a great job today. Staying on track, staying on rhythm. It was an easy decision to send her home on the home runs. They had no play on her. Lovie also played great on defense today. She made some phenomenal plays out there. Amanda (Scott) had them off balance today. She was making some good pitches and had them guessing. It was just an outstanding game for her. She only had one pitch get away from her the whole game. that kind of stuff just happens."
"It was very important for us to get that insurance run in the sixth inning."
TEXAS TECH Coach Renee Luers-Gillispie
"In regards to Lovie (Jung) you just cant make mistakes on her. If you make one mistake, it could be the end. She is so fast, she can just make the play herself. We knew this was our chance to get into the national tournament. Now, we are looking are three more games. Without the mistakes, it is a 1-0 ball game. We knew going into the game, we would have to play perfectly. Hopefully, seeing them will help us if we get to play them again. We will be able to adjust more to their style.
Second-seeded South Carolina took 12 innings to beat Pacific 2-1 and then turned right back around to play Texas Tech for the chance to play Fresno State Sunday afternoon while the loser of the game will be eliminated from the regional.
#2 South Carolina 2, # 4 Pacific
Pacific got on the board first in the fourth inning when Brandee McArtuther singled down the left field line and then Cindy Ball singled to left, moving McArthur to second. With two outs, Angele Alves singled to right and scored McArther. The Tigers held onto the one-run lead through the sixth when Kim Pietro led off the Gamecock inning with a double and then advanced to third on a fielders choice and came in on Heather Culvers single.
The game was dead-locked through 11 and a half innings before pitcher Megan Matthews started off with a single and advanced on an error. Joyce McMillin singled home the run to put South Carolina in the next game vs. Texas Tech.
Matthews pitched all 12 innings, giving up only five hits and one earned run while striking out five. The Tigers McArthur scattered 10 hits over nine innings, giving up only one earned run. South Carolina left 19 on the basepaths.
SOUTH CAROLINA Coach Joyce Compton
Will make comments following the South Carolina-Texas Tech game
PACIFIC Coach Brian Kolze
"You know there is not much you can do in a one-run game. The team that has the most breaks is certainly sooner or later going to score and the (South Carolina) did. They did. They created more opportunities and we came up one run short. They were all ... all opportunities and they were finally able to crack... crack the ice and get one home.
Score by innings R H E Pacific 000 100 000 000 0 1 5 5 South Carolina 000 000 000 001 2 13 1
Texas Tech jumped out early to a 2-0 lead and eliminated South Carolina 4-1 in the NCAA Regional Championships. The Red Raiders will advance to tomorrows final vs. Fresno State at 1 p.m.
Third baseman Kim Martinez hit a two-run homer to left field in the first inning to give Texas Tech all it needed for the win. The Red Raiders added insurance runs in the third inning. South Carolina, who played 12 innings just prior to this game, scored its only run in the seventh inning when second baseman Kim Schultz led off with a double to left center then second on a fielders choice.
Emily Hayes pitched the complete game and got the win for Texas Tech. South Carolinas Megan Matthews pitched another seven innings after going the full 12 in the earlier game. Matthews had 10 strikeouts in her 19 innings.
Score by innings R H E Texas Tech 202 000 0 4 5 2 South Carolina 000 000 1 1 3 1
TEXAS TECH Coach Renee Luers-Gillispie
"It was a big game for us. We knew we had to be able to go up against South Carolina. We didn't want them to come back on us because we beat them earlier. Basically, we knew we needed to have that game to get to the finals. We wanted to be able to get the chance to go up against Fresno (Fresno State) one more time. And with a little luck and a few less errors, I think we got a chance of giving them a good game."
SOUTH CAROLINA Coach Joyce Compton
"The first game I was proud of the way we kept them (Pacific). I thought Megan (Matthews) threw great in the first game and I thought she threw well in the second game. I'm not sure we got a whoel lot of support (in the second game). We had a defensive blunder that hurt us. It kills us. it should be two-nothing. I think the momentum we had from the first game kind of dropped a little bit in the second game. I think had we kept it at two-nothing, I think the bats would have livened up a little more. THey came back and they did what they needed to do. They scored on us quick and they shut the door."
