Ragin’ Cajuns drop the ball, literally
Erin Lennon
Daily Sports Writer May 24th, 2013
Time and again, avid little leaguers have been given the same words of advice: keep your eye on the ball.
As Louisiana-Lafayette first baseman Matte Haack backtracked for a foul ball off the bat of senior second baseman Ashley Lane, it looked like the No. 8 Michigan softball team would be out of luck at Alumni Field. Haack looked towards her pitcher in anticipation of the first out in the bottom of the eighth inning — their team two outs away from a comeback 3-2 victory.
Instead, the ball popped out of her glove for strike one. It was an error that would inevitably come back to haunt Haack and her team. It was an error that cost her team the game.
Lafayette had crawled its way back from a 2-0 shutout. Sophomore pitcher Sara Driesenga struck out six batters and allowed as many hits in six innings in the circle. In the seventh, Driesenga watched two Ragin’ Cajuns connect pitches for two home runs to put Louisiana up by a run in the first frame in extra innings.
“There were plays that we usually make, but we’re not robots,” said Louisiana-Lafayette shortstop Nerissa Myers. “Sometimes we’re going to drop a ball, sometimes we’re going to miss a ground ball. That’s the game.”
On the next pitch, Lafayette catcher Sarah Draheim — who committed only one error in 474 attempts this season — took her own eye off the ball. A ball back to the cage allowed junior outfielder Brandi Virgil to advance to second, putting the tying run in scoring position without an out recorded and with Lane still at the plate.
Lane was one of an entire Michigan lineup whose bats fell silent after scoring two runs in the first inning against ULL pitcher Jordan Wallace. The senior — who hit .381 with 17 home runs in the regular season — went 0-for-3 against Wallace with three strikeouts. In her final at bat, Lane represented the winning run. Cromier knows, she could have been the first out.
“It’s just part of the game, and I don’t know if we were up tight,” said Louisiana-Lafayette coach Michael Lotief. “I think the mindset of our team was good coming in, it’s just a crazy game and the momentum will swing one way and another.”
Instead, Lane kept her eye on the ball. And she didn’t miss.
Lane drilled the third pitch of the at-bat over the left field fence for a no-doubt walk-off home run — her 18th of the season and her first career walk-off hit.
“I wasn’t getting hits and I was guessing,” Lane said, “so I talked to (Michigan coach Carol Hutchins) before my at-bat and just relaxed.”
As Lane trotted around the bases, Hutchins leapt into the arms of assistant head coach Bonnie Tholl. With the win, the Wolverines are one win away from a trip to Oklahoma City for the Women’s College World Series.
“It’s very hard to get to Oklahoma,” Hutchins said. “It’s very hard. I think it’s a great addition. It’s fantastic softball, it’s made everybody in the country better and you have to play your best. The team that plays the best gets to go on.”
And unlike Haack, their eyes haven’t left their goal.
Printed from www.michigandaily.com on Tue, 28 May 2013 04:28:04 -0400