Feb. 21, 2010
BOCA RATON, Fla. – he Kentucky softball team racked up its fifth straight victory on the weekend with a 4-1 defeat of Florida Atlantic in the Championship game of the Kickoff Classic hosted by the Owls. Senior Molly Johnson went 1-for-1 on the day at the plate with a triple and she crossed the plate twice.
Sophomore pitcher Chanda Bell earned her fourth win of the season and another 10 strikeout performance. Kentucky improves to 8-2 overall on the season with its fifth consecutive victory.
In the bottom of the first, Johnson began the inning with a leadoff walk to get a runner aboard. The speedy senior then swiftly stole second to put a runner in scoring position with no outs. Kara Dill’s chopper back to the pitcher had a throw attempted to get Johnson advancing to third, but UK’s runner was safe and Dill used the opportunity to scoot to second placing two runners in scoring position. After a short foul out to left field, Brittany Cervantes brought in UK’s run with a grounder to second base for a Kentucky 1-0 advantage.
The Wildcats added to two runs in the bottom of the third to add to their lead at 3-0. Johnson led off with her first triple of the season into the right-center gap. She came home on a single by Dill. Natalie Smith’s single brought Dill home for the second run of the inning.
Florida Atlantic tallied a run in the top of the fourth make the score 3-1. The Owls earned a one-out double and the second double of the inning allowed the runner to tap home.
Kentucky added to its advantage with a run in the bottom of the fourth stanza. Megan Yocke opened the frame with a double into the left-center gap. Destinee Mordecai earned a walk to place two runners on base with no outs. Meagan Aull and Johnson laid down consecutive sacrifice bunts to allow Yocke to round home for a 4-1 lead for the Wildcats. It was all of the runs the Blue and White would need to take home its fifth straight win.
Kentucky returns to action at the Chattanooga tournament beginning Friday. The Wildcats will take on Evansville at 10 a.m. and Kansas at 12:30 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 26th.
Stay tuned to UKathletics.com for the most up-to-date information regarding the Kentucky softball team.
