April 17, 2008
Game 1 Stats|
Game 2 Stats
Contact: Brian McCann
CLEVELAND, Ohio - Freshman Katelyn Ciminelli drove in four runs as part of a Viking offensive explosion that helped Cleveland State to rally to split a non-conference doubleheader with Saint Francis. The Red Flash won the opener, 4-3, with CSU claiming the second game, 8-0 in five innings.
The loss snapped CSU's (21-10) winning streak at five games while Saint Francis improved to 15-29. Coupled with a split of a league doubleheader between Butler and Wright State and the Vikings took over sole possession of first place in the Horizon League with an 8-2 record.
"This doubleheader kind of sums up how our season has gone," CSU head coach Angie Nicholson said. "We couldn't buy a hit in the first game and then we hit the ball all over the field in the second game.
The Vikings took control of the nightcap in the third when Ciminelli hit a bases-loaded single to center to score a pair of runs. Amy Powell followed with a fly ball to the warning track in center that SFU's Nicole Bender dropped, allowing two more runs to score.
CSU added three more in the fourth. With two out, Whitney Willard, Danielle Young and Amanda Houchin banged out consecutive singles to drive in one. Christa Coppus walked to load the bases and Ciminelli followed with a two-run single to right.
Ciminelli, who had a pair of hits to raise her batting average to .286, moved into third place on the team with 18 RBI this year.
The eight-run mercy rule came into play in the bottom of the fifth when Natalie DeMatteis walked with one out and Jessica Burt doubled her to third. Willard then ended the game with a sharp grounder to second to score DeMatteis with the game-ending run.
Amanda Macenko picked up the win for the Vikings, scattering three hits in five innings to improve to 16-8 on the year.
"Amanda really bounced back in the second game," Nicholson said. "She was a little inconsistent in her two innings in the first game but really knuckled down in the second game."
The first game was a pitcher's battle between CSU's Brittany Bate and SFU's Laura Caldwell for the first six innings until the long ball proved the difference in the seventh.
The Red Flash took a 1-0 lead in the fifth when Kelly Slingwine singled to score Nicole Bender from second.
Bate gave way to Amanda Macenko in the sixth after allowing just one run on fice hits through five innings.
Saint Francis extended its lead to 4-0 in the seventh when Slingwine hit a three-run homer that barely cleared the fence in left. The three runs were the first allowed by CSU in the seventh inning this year.
The Vikings rallied however in the bottom of the frame. With one out, Amy Powell hit her first homerun of the year, a towering blast to left center. After Natalie DeMatteiss walked, Jessica Burt followed with a two-out homerun to right to close the gap to 4-3.
The rally ended there as Whitney Willard lined out to second to end the inning.
Bate was the hard luck loser for CSU, dropping to 3-1 on the year while Laura Caldwell picked up the win for Saint Francis, limiting CSU to seven hits to improve to 5-17.
Cleveland State takes to the road this weekend for an important three-game series at fourth-place UIC. The Vikings will play a doubleheader on Saturday (April 19) and a single game on Sunday (April 20).
