The Kentucky softball team dropped the first two games of a weekend series to the No. 4 LSU Tigers Saturday at the UK Softball Complex. Amber Janneck provided the Cats? lone run of the day with her 11th home run of the year in game one, as the Tigers downed UK 9-1 and 9-0 in the doubleheader.
The Cats (21-22-1, 5-18 Southeastern Conference) kept the Tigers scoreless and held onto the 1-0 advantage through five innings in the series opener. But LSU (38-7, 15-4 SEC) came out on fire in the sixth, scoring nine runs on eight hits in the frame. The Tigers loaded the bases quickly to begin the inning with three consecutive singles, and a base hit from Stephanie Hill scored the first run of the inning with no outs. Julie Wiese followed with a bases-loaded walk, and another base hit from Leigh Ann Danos gave LSU a 3-1 lead. UK finally got the first out of the inning after forcing Hill out at home on a fielder?s choice from Sara Fitgerald, but it would take six more batters and six additional runs before UK got out of the inning.
UK couldn?t come up with anything in the bottom of the sixth, ending the game an inning early due to the eight-run mercy rule. Amy Kendall (7-12) pitched five solid shutout innings before leaving the game after facing three batters in the sixth. Kendall struck out one while giving up seven hits and three earned runs in the loss. LSU?s Kristin Schmidt (22-4) recorded the complete game while giving up only five hits.
Janneck also provided the most impressive defensive play of the day in the second inning, as she caught a ball from Fitzgerald as it went foul over the first-base fence just beyond the LSU dugout. The freshman flipped over the fence but still managed to hang on to the ball for the second out of the inning.
The Cats weren?t as spectacular on defense in game two, as they gave up nine unearned runs to the Tigers on five errors. UK?s offense also lagged in game two, as the Cats managed to get only three hits off pitcher Emily Turner (15-3). LSU only led by a 4-0 margin heading into the fifth, but five Tigers crossed the plate in the inning to once again force a mercy rule ending to the contest.
The Cats and Tigers wrap up play Sunday with the series finale at 1 p.m. in Lexington. Live stats can be accessed at www.ukathletics.com.
