April 6, 2007
Box Score
CHICAGO - Not even winter-like temperatures could put an end to Loyola University Chicago's (9-12, 5-0 Horizon) winning streak as the Ramblers swept a doubleheader from Wright State (14-19, 1-4 Horizon) this afternoon at a frigid Loyola Softball Park. With a 4-0 win in the opener, coupled with a dramatic 3-2 victory in nine innings in the nightcap, the Ramblers ran their winning streak to five games, their longest since March 2005.
In game one, sophomore right-hander Krista Crosson scattered seven hits and struck out a career-best 10 Raiders en route to her third shutout of the season and Ashley Mitchell went 4 for 4 to lead Loyola to the win in its home opener.
Loyola scored all four of its runs in the first three innings of the game to take control of the contest, plating its first run via a Wright State error in the top of the first. Mitchell singled in a run in the second and the Ramblers added two more tallies in the third on Nora Schober's suicide squeeze and another Raider error.
The nightcap was a thrilling contest as Loyola rallied late to tie the contest on two occasions before pulling out the victory in the ninth inning on Kat Krause's walk-off home run.
Wright State took a 1-0 lead in the third inning without the benefit of a hit when Malerie Klingler scored on a wild pitch. Loyola right-hander Amy Solava took a no-hitter into the sixth inning before Michelle Logan singled with one out to break up the rookie's bid for immortality.
Loyola rallied to tie the game in the bottom of the sixth inning on Mitchell's two-out single that scored Tara Miller, who had led off the inning by getting hit by a pitch. The Ramblers had a chance to earn the win in the bottom of the seventh, but stranded a runner on second base.
Kristen Bradshaw's two-out single scored Jherica Williams in the top of the eighth to put Wright State on top, 2-1, but the Ramblers displayed a resiliency that has been their trademark all season, yet again. In the bottom of the eighth, Mitchell laced an RBI double to left field to score Lindsay O'Gean, to even the game at 2-2 and then Krause led off the ninth with a mammoth blast over the left-field fence to cap off the rally.
Solava was sensational in the circle, striking out a season-high 14 batters, while yielding only two hits in the complete-game effort. Mitchell added two more hits in the nightcap and drove in a pair of lead the Loyola offensive attack.
The teams are scheduled to play a single contest tomorrow at noon.
