April 15, 2011

Story courtesy of Union Sports Information

BARBOURVILLE, Ky. -- The Union College (Ky.) softball team dominated an AAC doubleheader against Virginia Intermont on Thursday (April 14) at Union Field, winning both games one and two by 10-0 scores in five innings.

With the victories, the Lady Bulldogs are now 21-22 on the season, 5-7 in the AAC, while Virginia Intermont fell to 17-18, 4-5 in the AAC with the losses.

In game one, Union exploded for six runs in the bottom of the second inning and never looked back in the 10-run win in five, as Falon Catalano was once again dominant in the pitching circle for the Lady Bulldog, recording her second no-hitter of the year.

Union got off to a quick lead in the bottom of the second, as Catalno helped her own cause at the dish, smacking an RBI double to score Abby Sears, giving the Lady Bulldogs the early 1-0 edge. Then, in the second,Union blew the game wide open, scoring six runs to take a 7-0 lead.

The scoring started off in the inning when Whitley Cochran and Hillary Leftrick forced bases loaded walks to record RBI with one out on the board. With the bases still juiced, the next batter up was Sears, who roped a bases clearing, three RBI double to left center,  giving Union a 6-0 lead. Ashley Tatman then capped the inning off with an RBI single of her own with two outs (scoring Sears).

Union added three more runs in the bottom of the third, as Alyson Roberts had an RBI single and Leftrick and Sears each added to their RBI total on ground outs to second base to give the Lady Bulldogs a ten-run lead.

It was more than enough for Union starter Catalano to record the win (8-4), as she was impressive on the day in the circle, allowing just one base runner in the five inning start (on a walk in the fifth). The senior struck out 10 in the outing to notch the fourth no-hitter in school history and her second of her 2011 campaign, with her previous no-no coming on Mar. 16  at St. Catharine (the previous no-hitters for Union came in 2001 and 2007). Catalano's second no-hitter comes off the heels of her 16-strikeout performance against Bluefield on Tuesday that broke a school record.

At the plate in game one, Sears was 2-for-3 with four RBI and two runs scored, while Tatman was 2-for-3 with an RBI. Meanwhile, Leftrick has two RBI in the dominating win.

In game two, it was more of the same for the Lady Bulldogs, as they used a nine-run third inning to record another 10-run victory in five.

The Lady Bulldogs scored their first run in the bottom of the first when Leftrick reached base after a bobbled ball from the VIC third baseman. The third baseman's throw to first then went errant, enabling Leftrick to score all the way from first and give Union the 1-0.

This set the stage for the nine-run third, as the Lady Bulldogs bashed nine hits to take the ten-run lead after three. In the inning, Sears had four RBI alone, starting the inning off with an RBI single to right (scoring Cochran), the smacking another bases clearing, three-RBI double late in the inning that gave Union the 10-0 lead. Other players to notch RBI for the Lady Bulldogs in the inning were Catalano, Autumn Greenwell (who had a two RBI single), Roberts (on an RBI single), and Leftrick (who also had an RBI single). 

The 10-run lead was plenty for Union starter Katie Perkins to work with, as she earned the shutout win (7-9), while giving up three hits and striking out five. At the dish in the second game, Sears had another 2-for-3, four RBI performance (to push her total in the DH to eight), while Greenwell went 2-for-3 with two RBI.

The Lady Bulldogs return to action on Sunday when they host Montreat in an AAC doubleheader. First pitch at Union Field is scheduled for 2 p.m.