Feb. 12, 2012
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WACO, Texas — The University of Iowa softball team notched its second run-rule victory of the season, downing Belmont, 8-0, in five innings Sunday morning in its Getterman Classic finale.
The victory improves Iowa’s record to 3-2, while the Bruins fall to 0-5 on the year.
“We talked about finishing strong today on the weekend and the girls did a nice job of that,” said UI head coach Marla Looper. “Our hitters did a nice job of driving the ball and putting them in the gaps.”
The Hawkeyes jumped out to a two run lead in the first. Freshman Megan Blank singled to open the game before moving to second on a sacrifice bunt by junior Ashley Akers. Sophomore Kayla Massey’s RBI single through the left side of the infield made the score 1-0.
Senior Katie Keim plated Iowa’s second run of the frame with an RBI single to centerfield, driving in Massey from second base. The Hawkeyes added their second run in the second. Juniors Bradi Wall and Johnnie Dowling reached on consecutive walks with one out before Akers’ RBI single to centerfield made the score 3-0.
Lyon pitched herself in and out of trouble in the top of the third inning. The first two Belmont batters singled to lead off the inning. After a double steal by Amanda Criscione and Kirbie Ferrell put runners at second and third, Lyon induced a fly out before throwing out Criscione at the plate on a comeback grounder. She then struck out third baseman Ashley Hammer swinging to end the inning with the bases loaded.
The Hawkeyes broke the game open with three runs in the bottom of the fourth. Wall scored the first run on a wild pitch before senior Liz Watkins laced a two-run double into the right centerfield gap to make the score 7-0.
Iowa scored its eighth run in the bottom of the fifth inning. Freshman Melanie Gladden singled to centerfield to lead off the frame. With one out, Dowling hit a hard grounder to second baseman M.J. Lawson, but it squirted through her legs into right center, allowing Gladden to score from first to end the game.
Junior Chelsea Lyon notched her second victory of the season in the circle, allowing three hits in the complete game shutout. She struck out four Bruins to two walks.
Six different Hawkeyes accounted for at least one hit in the game. Blank and Keim paced the team with two hits apiece. Blank went 2-for-3 with two runs scored, while Keim was 2-for-3 with an RBI.
Iowa returns to action next weekend in Tempe, Ariz., for the Littlewood Classic. The Hawkeyes open play at 4 p.m. (CT) against Illinois State.
| Iowa 8, Belmont 0 (5 innings) | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | R | H | E |
| Belmont (0-5) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | X | X | 0 | 3 | 3 |
| Iowa (3-2) | 2 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 1 | X | X | 8 | 8 | 1 |
| Game Decision | ||||||||||
| W: Chelsea Lyon (Iowa) 2-1 | ||||||||||
| L: Becca Gift (Belmont) 0-3 | ||||||||||