URI softball suffers two losses during weekend's Frost Classic

03/05/09 - The University of Rhode Island softball team was handed a pair of deflating losses this past weekend at a shortened Chattanooga Frost Classic. URI fell to both Lipscomb University and the University of Tennessee-Martin by scores of 7-3 and 2-1.Rhody was pegged to face both Radford University and Tennessee Technical College the following day, as well as Eastern Tennessee State University on the third and final day of the tournament. Rainy weather forced the cancellation of the final three contests.

In each game that Rhode Island played, the Rams went into the final inning tied, but relinquished the lead.

"Our game is about momentum," head coach Erin Layton said. "In the seventh inning, on each occasion, the team that we were playing was able to take momentum from us."

In game one, Rhody squared off against Lipscomb University, led by power-hitting shortstop Abby Keese.

The Bison opened the scoring in the first thanks to some timely hitting, as Lipscomb's Kellie Sirus smacked a double to centerfield, capitalizing on a costly Rhody.

Junior Melissa Wilson answered back for Rhode Island in the second as she blasted a solo homerun, her first of the year, over the center field wall to even the score at 1.

Rhody added another run in the third as it too was able to exploit a costly error, pushing a run across to secure the 2-1 advantage.

Botched bunt coverage led to another URI error and a Bison single, setting the stage for Lipscomb slugger, Keese, to break the game wide open. Layton opted to intentionally walk Keese for the second time in the game, loading the bases.

Under pressure, Rhody pitcher Allison Hartzell suffered her first miscue of the game, as she plunked the next batter, forcing in a run to tie the game at two.

Lipscomb broke the tie in the fifth inning thanks to a single by Sirus, another Keese walk and a sacrifice fly that plated a run.

The Rams responded with a run of their own in the seventh as sophomore Amanda Sbei came around to score on a throwing error by Bison catcher Mollie Mitchell.

With the game on the line, Layton and her staff opted to keep Hartzell in the game for the bottom of the seventh.

"I wanted to stick with her the entire way," Layton said. "If I had to make that decision again, I would still give Allison [Hartzell] that same opportunity."

Lipscomb's Lauren Dortwegt lashed a double down the left field line to begin the inning and was followed up with a bunt base hit by Courtney Billington.

Hartzell then issued a free pass to Sirus, forcing the imminent bases-loaded confrontation with Keese.

With three walks under her belt, Keese finally saw her pitch and sent it over the wall for a walk-off grand slam.

"We said that she wasn't going to hurt us and it was frustrating because she ended up in a position where she could," Layton said.

Down, but not out, Rhode Island went into the afternoon game with UT-Martin focused, Layton said

Both UTM's Paij Lintz and URI's Odalys Torres spent the first three innings pitching to contact with neither team able to formulate any type of offense consistency.

The Skyhawk hits began to fall in the fourth inning, as they notched a trio of singles and a double.

They were unable to score however, thanks to Wilson who was able to gun down a runner attempting to steal, and freshman left fielder Brittany Julich who showcased her arm by nailing a runner at the plate.

The Rhody bats then woke up in their half of the fourth as well.

Junior Jackie Kampmeier led off with a walk and advanced to second by Sbei.

Junior Leah DiBussulo roped a single through the infield, scoring Sbei from second and giving Rhody the 1-0 lead.

Both teams would trade zeros until the top of the seventh when the Skyhawks finally got to freshman pitcher Jayshree Narendran who had been pitching solid relief for Torres.

UTM came through with two runs on three hits.

With their backs against the wall, Rhody went three up and three down in the frame, losing 2-1.

"Defensively, I feel like we really helped out our pitchers with some great plays," Layton said. "Offensively, I feel like we needed more than one run and we had talked about that from the fourth inning on."

Despite the two losses, Layton said she is not disappointed in her team. She said she feels that her team is improving every day and is putting in the effort that it takes to win games.

Rhody has two weeks of practice to prepare for their next contest, a 10-game stint at the Rebel Spring Games in Kissimmee, Fla. The games will begin Saturday, March 14.

"When we're firing on all cylinders in practice, it's very enjoyable to watch," Layton said. "It's just a matter of putting it all together.