University of North Carolina Athletics
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Florida State
UNC Softball Falls To FSU Twice On Sunday
April 16, 2000 | Softball
April 16, 2000
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. - In the final game for four Lady Seminole seniors, FSU sent their record to 36-24 and 2-2 in the conference after sweeping North Carolina this afternoon at the FSU Softball Complex. Florida State won game one 10-9 and took game two 5-4 after trailing 4-0. North Carolina goes to 41-15 on the season, 4-2 in the ACC.
Senior Teresa Edenfield started her final regular season game at the FSU Softball Complex with a two run single to centerfield in the 1st inning, scoring junior Staci Brandon and sophomore Kimmy Carter before fellow senior ecky Wallace knocked in freshman Brandi Stuart on a single to right field, giving the Lady Seminoles a 3-0 lead. Carter then drove in junior Serita rooks and sophomore Becky Brock on a triple to centerfield in the 2nd inning to give FSU an early 5-0 lead. But the Tar Heels answered in the 3rd inning. UNC junior Michelle Semmes drove in senior Crystal Henderson, who singled to get on base, and sophomore Rosie Gustavson, who got on off a fielder's choice. Sophomore Natalie Anter drove in senior Jen Klesaris, who was hit by a pitch, for run number three and sophomore Kelly Ramsey added the fourth run, scoring Semmes to cut the Florida State lead to 5-4.
The Lady Seminoles extended the lead to in the 4th inning when Edenfield added two more runs off a double to centerfield, scoring Stuart and Brooks for a 7-4 lead but Tar Heel junior Beth Olen drove in Klesaris and Semmes scored on a wild pitch to cut the lead to one in the 5th. Brandon scored senior Andi Lyons and junior Natalie Bennett on a triple to centerfield in the 5th before the Tar Heel answered in the 6th, scoring three runs off two hits and a sacrifice bunt to cut the lead to 10-9 but the Lady Seminoles held on to take their first ACC win of the year.
Edenfield led the team, going 2-4 with four RBI's and a double with Brandon (2-4, 2 RBI's) and Carter (2-3, 2 RBI's) each adding a triple. Sophomore pitcher Leslie Malerich (23-13) went the distance, pitching her 26th complete game and striking out three. North Carolina's Radara McHugh took the loss, going to 20-5 on the season and striking out four batters in four innings.
The Tar Heels came out swinging in the second game, scoring four runs in the top of the first inning. Henderson reached base on an error with Klesaris singling before Semmes hit a sacrifice bunt, moving everyone one base. FSU intentionally walked Anter when Ramsey hit a three run double to centerfield before scoring off a single by Olen to give UNC the 4-0 lead. FSU cut the lead in half in the bottom of the inning when Carter, who singled to reach base, scored on a wild pitch and Wallace drove in Stuart to take the game to 4-2. Stuart then drove in Brooks and Carter scored on a wild pitch in the 3rd inning to tie the game at 4-4. Both teams remained scoreless until the 6th inning when Brandon drove in Lyons on a single to centerfield to give FSU the 5-4 win. Carter, Lyons and Stuart all went 1-2 with Stuart adding an RBI. Malerich pitched 6.2 shut-out innings and struck out two after junior Robyn Gauger pitched a third of an inning, giving up four runs.
"Both teams showed a lot of heart today," Head Coach JoAnne Graf said. "What a battle, both games were one run games. There were a lot of runs and a lot of hits, which shows just how close these two teams are. These are the top two teams in the conference and it was fitting that it came down to two one-run games."
