February 28, 2004
Senior Jessica Kapchinski pitched the No. 23 Texas A&M softball team (11-8, 0-0) to an 8-0 win over Penn State in the Ags first game on Saturday at the St. Joseph Aggie Invitational II. In their second game No. 17 Oregon got revenge on the Ags, for a loss they took to A&M earlier this season, defeating them 4-1.
In her third start, Kapchinski threw a complete game one-hitter as she dominated the Lions with nine strikeouts.
"She was in command of her pitches," Head Coach Jo Evans said. "She did a nice job mixing up her pitches and did a really great job, I thought, of not trying to get the strikeout but trying to get the out. She and Nicole Robinson worked great together."
A&M, the designated visitor, put one run across in the top of the first off of one hit and one error. Senior second baseman Sherah Atkins scored on a throwing error by Lion pitcher Marissa Hanson after singling to right and advancing to second on an Adrian Gregory ground out.
The Aggies extended their lead to 3-0 in the third on first baseman Kristen Gunter's second home run of the season. Gunter took the changeup and bounced it off the scoreboard in left field, scoring Jana James from second. James reached on an infield single and advanced to second on her eighth stolen base of the season.
A&M added three runs in the fourth on three hits and another Lion error. Junior Nicole Robinson got the Aggies going with a lead off double to left center. Freshman Lisa Gorzycki entered to pinch run for Robinson and advanced to third on a Sharonda McDonald single. McDonald's single moved right fielder Rocky Spencer to second after she reached on a base hit. All three Aggie base runners then scored when Atkins hit a grounder to second that was misplayed by Katie Stauffer.
A&M put two more runs across in the final frame when Lindsay Wilhelmson singled scoring Gunter and Laura Durham. Gunter scored after reaching on a fielder's choice and advancing to third on a Durham double that just squeezed in between the bag and first baseman Kristi Leiter.
In Saturday's final game Oregon took the lead in the fourth inning on a two-run two-out single by Leiter. Leiter laced the pitch from Wilhelmson through the right side of the infield, just out of the grasp of second baseman Sherah Atkins , scoring Ann Marie Topps from third and Kayleen Hudson from second.
The Aggies answered with one run in the bottom of the inning when James singled up the middle and promptly scored when Gunter hit a double to right center.
The Ducks got their run back in the fifth on another Aggie miscue. With a runner on second Beth Boskovich hit a grounder that Atkins misplayed allowing Ashley Richards to give Oregon a 3-1 lead. The Ducks added a fourth run in the seventh sealing their 12th win of the season.
Wilhelmson took the loss, dropping her record to 2-3, after throwing a complete game where she only allowed one earned run, struck out four batters and did not give up a walk.
Play in the St. Joseph Aggie Invitational II finishes up tomorrow beginning at 10 a.m. when Oregon takes on Penn State followed by A&M and Southern Mississippi at noon.
Live stats for all tournament games are available on AggieAthletics.com. Live audio is available for the A&M games only.
Aggie Invitational I - Friday Results
10 a.m. Oregon defeated Penn State 4-0
12:15 p.m. Oregon defeated Southern Mississippi 13-3
2:30 p.m. Texas A&M defeated Southern Mississippi 10-3
4:45 p.m. Texas A&M defeated Penn State 4-2
Saturday Results
10:00 a.m. Oregon defeated Southern Mississippi 12-1
12:15 p.m. Penn State defeated Southern Mississippi 8-4
2:30 p.m. A&M defeated Penn State 8-0
4:45 p.m. Oregon defeated A&M 4-1
Remaining Tournament Schedule
Sunday, February 22, 2004
10:00 a.m. Oregon vs. Penn State
12:00 p.m. A&M vs. Southern Mississippi