Oregon State
Nevada
Extra Inning Thriller Highlights Day Two of Mary Nutter Classic
February 23, 2013 | Softball
Feb. 22, 2013
CATHEDRAL CITY, Calif. – The extraordinary moments in today's game between Oregon State and Nevada blended together so well that by the time senior catcher Ally Kutz had her third RBI of the game on the game-winning sacrifice fly to score Desiree Beltran, many of those in attendance at the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic finally had time to take a deep breath and remove themselves from the edges of their seats. For those in orange and black, it was also time to smile. The Beavers (12-3) defeated the Wolfpack, 6-5, in 11 innings. OSU later beat Illinois, 5-1, to win its 10th game in a row.
Oregon State found itself down, 4-3, headed into the bottom of the sixth. The Beavers had taken a 3-0 lead with Kutz's two-run single providing the bulk of that offense in the fourth. In the top of the fifth, though, Nevada came up with four runs of its own. Freshman pitcher Sarah Shadinger filled the zone with strikes all day, but the Wolfpack did an excellent job of fouling off pitches. Erin Jones took it to a new level. She fouled off over a dozen pitches before finally winning the battle and hitting a three-run homer. Two batters later, Nevada went deep again to take the lead. Shadinger finished with six strikeouts in her five innings.
Down by a run, a familiar clutch face popped into the box in the sixth. Senior Lea Cavestany hit yet another timely home run to tie the score and send the game into extras. It almost ended in the bottom of the seventh. With runners on the corners and two away, freshman Natalie Hampton ripped the ball right back to the circle. Nevada pitcher Karlyn Jones did a successful job of surviving the impact by getting a glove in the way and gathering herself to make the play at first to end the inning.
With runners placed at second base in each extra frame, both teams managed to score runs in the eighth inning to move the score to 5-5.
In the 11th, Nevada threatened to take the lead in the top half. With runners on first and third and two outs against senior Marina Demore, shortstop Elizabeth Santana made a diving stop on a grounder up the middle destined for center field grass. She flipped to Ya Garcia for the force to end the threat and to set Kutz up with her game-winner in the bottom half.
Cavestany had two hits to lead the team and joined Beltran with two runs scored. Demore earned the win, pitching five innings in relief and allowing just one hit in those innings. Junior Amanda Najdek bridged the gap between Shadinger and Demore with a hitless sixth inning.
Demore took the ball from the outset of the Beavers' win over Illinois. A scoreless game until the third, sophomore Ashley Sanchez on third, Hampton hit her fourth home run in five games to make it 3-0.
Kutz added her second homer of the season one inning later to make it 4-0. After Illinois got on the board in the fifth, the Beavers took that run right back with four walks. Gilmore was forced in on Cavestany's walk.
Hampton was 2-for-2 against the Illini. Demore allowed just six hits and struck out three to earn her second win of the day and eighth of the season. The 10-game winning streak is the longest since the 28-game school record winning streak in 2006. The Beavers face Georgia Tech tomorrow at noon in the final game here for the team.
