March 29, 2009
ATHENS, Ga. – Despite out-hitting the seventh ranked Georgia Bulldogs in the third game of the series, the Kentucky softball team suffered a sweep with a pair of losses Sunday on a brisk and windy day in Athens Sunday. Georgia took the first game of Sunday’s doubleheader 10-0 and posted a 5-2 win in the final game of the series.
UK notched eight hits compared to Georgia’s five in the third game, but could not string together enough runs for a comeback. The Wildcats’ record drops to 22-11 overall and 5-7 in the Southeastern Conference. Georgia improves to 24-4 and 7-2 in league play.
Junior Molly Johnson led the Wildcats at the plate with three hits in the second game, including a pair of doubles. Sophomores Meagan Aull and Megan Yocke both notched two hits in the game with Aull scoring a run and Yocke registering a run batted in.
Johnson led off the second game with a double into left center to get things going early for the Blue and White. Aull laid down an infield single bunt to put two runners on base. Yocke recorded a sacrifice bunt to advance the runners into scoring position, but the inning ended on back-to-back outs preventing UK from scratching the scoreboard.
The Bulldogs posted a run in the home half of the first when their leadoff batter Taylor Schlopy earned a base when she was struck on a pitch. She advanced two bases behind a stolen base and a passed ball and came home on a groundout to the shortstop giving Georgia the 1-0 edge.
Kentucky tied it up at one a piece in the top of the third. Johnson registered her second hit of the game when she split the left side. She would then move into scoring position with a stolen base leaving way for Yocke to bring her home when she sliced an RBI hit into the left center gap.
Georgia fired back with a pair of runs in the bottom of the frame to reclaim the lead. They scored on one hit and a pair of UK miscues to take the 3-1 advantage. They added two more runs in the fourth to increase their lead to 5-1.
UK attempted to rally when it tallied a run in the top of the sixth after Aull led off with a single to the third baseman. She moved ahead a bag with her team-leading 19th stolen base of the season. Yocke found a hole in shallow center field to place runners on the corners. Freshman Brittany Cervantes plated the run with a sacrifice fly to right field pulling the Wildcats to within 5-2, however that would be the final margin.
Georgia jumped out in front and never looked back in the first game of the doubleheader. The Bulldogs plated three runs in the bottom of the first and added seven in the second inning to form the final 10-0 margin.
Kentucky strung together some offense in the top half of the fifth when freshman Allie Jest notched an infield single and then stole second. Freshman Macy Allen was struck by a pitch which allowed her to take a base. Johnson sent a chopper into the gap that the shortstop was able to snag, but it allowed UK to load the bases but the rally ended on a groundout to first base.
Kentucky returns to the field when they host in-state rival No. 15 Louisville on Wednesday. The Cats and Cards will square off for a 5 p.m. tilt on April 1 in the first meeting of their home-and-home series of the season. Live stats and complete coverage of the UK Softball team against Louisville can be found at the team’s official homepage UKathletics.com.
