April 9, 2007

CALDWELL, Idaho - A.J. Cavanaugh hit a three-run home run in the bottom of the fifth inning to give Albertson College the lead for good, as the Lady Yotes salvaged a doubleheader split with No. 14 ranked Oregon Tech, winning the nightcap, 4-2, at Symms Field. OIT took Game 1, 6-2.

The Owls (24-6-1, 6-4 CCC) took a 2-0 lead in the third inning on a pair of Coyote miscues. With Kindel Thompson at first and one out, Kelsi Haylett ripped a line drive that was snared in the air by ACI pitcher Brooke Judy.

However, her throw to first to double-up Thompson went down the line, allowing the inning to continue. Brittany Shlee would rip the next pitch to right field, with the ball misplayed by Stacy Smith, allowing Thompson to score. Amanda Doherty followed with an RBI single to cap the inning.

Keri Gesner was rolling in the circle for Tech until the fifth - as Nicole Illias led off with a base hit and with two outs, Katie Zillner walked. Cavanaugh, who was 3-for-3 in the game, launched a 1-1 pitch over the centerfield wall to give the Coyotes (23-8, 8-2) the edge.

OIT nearly tied it in the top of the sixth, as Thompson rapped a base hit to center with two outs, but Heather Kirtley gunned down Jenni Bittle at the plate to end the inning. Smith would add her seventh home run of the season for good measure in the bottom of the frame, as ACI ended a nine-game skid to the Owls.

Judy got the win for the Yotes, who hold a two-game lead over OIT and Concordia in the Cascade Conference standings, allowing just six hits in the complete game win.

Game 1 saw a masterful performance from Bittle in the circle, as Tech ended the ACI school-record win streak at nine. The junior limited the Yotes to just four hits and struck out five, using a nasty curve-ball to keep the hosts off-balance.

OIT scored four times in the second inning with two outs off Zillner, who got the start for the Yotes. Bittle scored from third on a double steal when the ACI throw to second went into centerfield. Thompson added an RBI single and Haylett had a two-run single for the Owls. The Coyotes would get a solo homer from Illias in the third to get on the board, but Tech would counter with a Shlee RBI single in the fourth and a mammoth Doherty homer, her tenth of the season, in the seventh to put ACI away.

The Coyotes, six games into a 14-game homestand, host Northwest Nazarene in a twinbill on Tuesday afternoon, with first pitch scheduled for 5 p.m.