University of Pittsburgh Athletics
Pitt
USF
Softball Ends Regular Season With an 8-0 Victory
5/3/2009 12:00:00 AM | Softball
May 3, 2009
PITTSBURGH—Freshman Amanda Heitmeier went 3-for-3 with two RBI to lift the University of Pittsburgh softball team to a split in today’s doubleheader against USF, winning 8-0 in five innings at Trees Field. Pitt improved to 25-24 on the season and 9-15 in the Big East, while the Bulls slipped to 33-21 overall and 12-10 in the league.
Holding onto the shutout, Pitt earned its fourth eight-run mercy-rule victory of the season with two runs in the bottom of the fifth. Heitmeier recorded the first hit of the inning, as she moved freshman Niki Cognigni to third when she smacked a one-out double along the right foul line. Cognigni, who was walked on the previous at-bat, then scored when USF committed an error on junior Megan Livesey’s groundball.
Livesey then scored the game-ending run a few batters later, when sophomore Reba Tutt was hit by a pitch with bases loaded.
Earlier in the game, Heitmeier recorded the game-winning RBI in the first inning, as Pitt took the eventual lead with two runs off two hits. It all began when sophomore Ashley Amistade recorded a one-out infield single and stole second in the first inning. Freshman Kristen Cheesebrew and Sam Card were then walked, juicing the bases for Pitt. Heitmeier then stepped to the plate and singled to left field, sending Amistade and Cheesebrew in for the score.
Pitt added runs in the second inning when Cheesebrew cleared the bases with a triple down the right line, scoring three runs on the play. Cheesebrew would then score on the next at-bat, as Card recorded a base hit that was just outside the reach of the second baseman. Cheesebrew went 1-for-2 with three RBI and two runs in the contest.
Tutt and sophomore Alicia Broudy and freshman Sara Falotico scored runs in the inning. First, Falotico replaced freshman Yvette Bravo, who was walked. Then Broudy advanced to base on an infield error, while Tutt came back from a 0-2 count to advance to base on balls. Pitt led 6-0 after two innings.
Junior Kayla Zinger (6-8) pitched her third shutout of the season and the team’s eighth. Zinger allowed six hits, while walking two and recording one strikeout in the game.
USF stranded five runners on base. Pitt also out-hit the Bulls, 7-6.
