Michigan State University
Illinois
Spartans Split Sunday Doubleheader at Illinois
4/13/2008 12:00:00 AM | Softball
April 13, 2008
Game One Box Score
Game Two Box Score
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - The Spartans homered twice in game one and three times in game two against Illinois in Sunday's doubleheader as the Big Ten programs split games in Champaign, Ill. Michigan State (21-18, 5-5) took game one in five innings, 11-5, while the Fighting Illini battled back to claim game two, 9-8. MSU's long balls came from Nikki Nicosia, Caitlin Mahoney, Bianca Mejia and Gina Mondo - who hit two. Mondo led the team with six RBI, while Nicosia accounted for five RBI, going 4-for-7 with a pair of triples along with her homer.
A pair of home runs in the third and fourth innings pulled the Spartans ahead, and more than doubled their lead, as MSU went up 7-1 halfway through the fourth inning of game one. Nikki Nicosia cranked out her sixth home run of the season in the fourth inning, a three-run dinger down the right-field line, while Caitlin Mahoney homered in the third, a solo shot over the left-center wall. It was her 24th career homer, tying Dayna Feenstra with the second-most career home runs in MSU history.
The Spartans struck first for the first time in four games, when Bianca Mejia ripped an RBI single past the Illini shortstop, sending Nikki Nicosia home, as MSU took a 1-0 lead in the top of the first. Mahoney would get on base and score, as would Mejia, when Heidi Purtzer drove a stand-up double to the right-center warning track.
The Fighting Illini responded in the bottom of the third with a bases-loaded sacrifice fly with one out. Angelena Mexicano walked to re-load the bases, but Jessica Bracamonte fielded a low fly ball to right field to end the inning and maintain the MSU lead, 3-1.
Illinois tallied a home run of its own when Audrey Gallien sent one over centerfield. And in the bottom of the fourth, Kelly Confer came in to relieve Shae Bass, who finished with the win, striking out one while allowing just two earned runs.
Traci Nicosia came off the bench and stroked a double to center, driving in Bracamonte and Karen Fox - who was pinch running for Heidi Purtzer. Nikki Nicosia followed with a triple to score Traci, and Kara Weigle laid down a perfect suicide-squeeze bunt to score Nikki. The Spartans four-run fifth inning gave them the 11-3 lead, enough to wrap up game one in five innings.
Confer finished the game having pitched 1.2 innings, with one strikeout and no earned runs on two hits.
In game two, Mondo picked up right where the Spartans left off, sailing a three-run shot over the right-center fence, putting the Spartans ahead 3-0 in the first. The homer was Mondo's fifth of the year as Nikki Nicosia and Caitlin Mahoney scored on the play. The Illini earned a run with an RBI single to left field and runners on first and second in the bottom of the second, but MSU retired the inning still ahead, 3-1.
After an UI RBI triple, two-run home run and RBI single gave the Fighting Illini their first lead of the series, 5-3, Mejia sent her dinger - her sixth career homer - over the center-field wall, to inch the Spartans closer to regaining the lead in the top of the third. But UI answered with a home run in the bottom of the third and then tacked on two additional runs in the fourth to take an 8-4 lead.
The Spartans fought back in the fifth, when Nikki Nicosia tripled - her second of the day - and drove in Jessica LeFevre. The RBI was the only run for MSU as Illinois held the advantage, 8-5.
With two outs and runners on second and third, Mondo blasted her second three-run homer of the day - and sixth of the season - over the left-center fence to put the Spartans within in one run of UI's 9-8 lead, but the Illini would close out the inning and the game.
Lesley Noel started the game and pitched 1.2 innings before Confer came in for 1.1 innings. Bass threw the remaining three innings of the game. Noel went down as the pitcher of record in the loss.
The Spartans wrap up their road trip on Wednesday, April 16 with a 4 p.m. game at Central Michigan.
