March 21, 2007
San Diego State 5, No. 20 Georgia Tech 4
San Diego State 1, No. 20 Georgia Tech 0
SAN DIEGO - The San Diego State softball team swept a doubleheader against No. 20 Georgia Tech at SDSU Softball Stadium Wednesday night. The Aztecs (21-11), who have won eight consecutive games, rallied to defeat the Yellow Jackets (27-9), 5-4, in the first game and then won the nightcap, 1-0.
Georgia Tech, which came into the game with 42 homers and a .336 batting average, managed only 12 hits combined over the two games. San Diego State, the Mountain West Conference's top pitching team, fanned 15 Yellow Jackets and allowed only three extra-base hits.
In the first game, freshman Brittany Knudsen (San Diego/Escondido HS) scored from third on a grounder by junior Taryin Casillas (San Diego/Grossmont HS) in the bottom of the seventh inning to give SDSU the 5-4 come-from-behind win.
The Aztecs, who fell behind, 4-0, in the fourth when Georgia Tech right fielder Caitlyn Lever hit a three-run homer and Brittany Barnes scored on a Blair Shimandle single, scored the final five runs of the game, including three in the bottom half of the fourth.
Junior Tamani Wells (Concord, Calif.) led off the inning with a single and scored when Owens laced a double down the left field line. Casillas followed with a double of her own to score Owens and moved to third when sophomore Monica Alnes (Rancho Palos Verdes, Calif.) singled through the right side. One batter later, sophomore Kasey Mytinger (San Diego/West Hills HS) singled to right to score Casillas and pull the Aztecs within one run at 4-3.
An RBI single by sophomore Dani Sidoti (Tucson, Ariz.) in the sixth plated pinch-runner Lindsey Marquez (Tustin, Calif.) to tie the game at 4-4.
The Yellow Jackets threatened in the seventh after Kristina Hull hit a pinch-hit, one-out triple, and was replaced at third by Stephanie Butler. On the next at-bat, SDSU senior second baseman Amanda Beasley (San Diego/Mount Miguel HS) threw Butler out at home on a fielder's choice play. Beasley would make the third out when Aztec pitcher Christina Ross (Santa Clarita, Calif.) got Jennifer Yee to pop up to end the threat.
In the seventh, Knudsen drew a four-pitch walk and moved to third on a double by Owens. Casillas then hit the sharp grounder to the Georgia Tech second baseman to score Knudsen, her fifth game-winning run of the season.
Wells (2-for-3, run), Owens (two doubles, run, RBI) and Alnes (2-for-3) each had two hits to lead SDSU, while Casillas had a double and drove in two runs.
Ross scattered nine hits and four runs in seven innings of work. She struck out seven without a walk to improve to 13-5 on the season.
In the nightcap, Owens allowed just three hits to the high-powered Yellow Jacket offense, and Beasley scored the only run of the game in the third off a single by Wells to give the Aztecs the 1-0 victory.
Owens (8-6) struck out eight and allowed one walk in seven innings to pick up her second shutout of the season. All three Georgia Tech hits were singles.
Owens got SDSU out of a jam in the fourth when Lever had an infield single, stole second and moved to third on a wild pitch with no outs. Owens then struck out the Yellow Jackets' No. 5, No. 6 and No.7 batters in succession to end their biggest threat of the game.
Marquez (double), Owens (single) and Alnes (single) had the Aztecs' other hits in the game.
San Diego State hopes to continue its winning ways when it travels to Fullerton, Calif., for two games this Saturday. The Aztecs meet Ohio State at 10 a.m. and then play the host Titans at 2 p.m.