Softball Overcomes Deficit to Top Charlotte in Nine

Tuesday, April 7

Raleigh, N.C.

4:00 PM

NC State

19-16

Charlotte

21-9

Charlotte

NC State

Softball Overcomes Deficit to Top Charlotte in Nine

4/7/2009 12:00:00 AM | Softball

Box Score

RALEIGH, N.C. NC State overcame a four-run deficit to top Charlotte, 5-4, in a two-hour and 53 minute nine-inning marathon at the Curtis & Jacqueline Dail Softball Stadium on Tuesday, April 7.

The win moves the Pack to 19-16, while the 49ers fall to 21-9.

Alyssa Allbritten and Bridget Desbois each had home runs and three hits total, while Claudia Cooper and Lauren Peters each added two hits of their own. Lindsay Campana (10-7) got the win in five innings of relief, allowing just two hits and fanning seven. Mendy McKenzie tossed the opening four frames.

Emily Jeffery (15-5) took the loss.

Charlotte pushed across one run in the top of the first, but the damage could’ve been much worse. Hannah Ojeda made a sensational stab in center with the bases loaded to keep the 49ers from busting the inning wide open, but Jenny Rumbles came up with a run-scoring single to left.

Three hits developed into three runs for Charlotte in the top of the third. Jaime West doubled, Kendra McCall ran in her place, and Lorena Vela followed with a base hit through the right side. Both scored when Jenny Rumbles singled to center and the ball was bobbled. Sarah Malene later scored from third on a double steal.

State trimmed the lead to 4-1 with a run in the bottom of the fourth. Cooper reached on a dropped fly in left, and Katie Mansilla took her place on the base path. Kristine Bechtholdt then clocked a double into the left-center gap, and Mackenzie Mangum walked to load the bases. An Eliza Jacobellis grounder to third looked to be an inning-ender but Vela booted the ball, allowing Cooper to score.

A pair of long balls from Allbritten and Desbois allowed the Pack to knot the score at 4-all in the bottom of the fifth. Peters dropped a leadoff single into shallow right before Allbritten crushed one to left-center. Desbois later blasted a solo dinger to left.

The Pack had two on and no outs but failed to score in the bottom of the seventh, pushing the game into extra innings.

Campana dug deep to get the Pack out of a jam in the top of the ninth, fanning two in a row with runners on second and third.

State ended it in the ninth with one run. Bechtholdt reached on a fielder’s choice to short and Mangum stroked a long single into the right-center alley, pushing Bechtholdt to third. Jacobellis then grounded one to second, but a Sarah Malene miscue allowed Bechtholdt to score the game-winning run.

NC State and Charlotte will begin game two of today’s doubleheader shortly.