Louisville Splits on Day Two of the ACC/Big Ten Challenge

Saturday, February 18

Atlanta, Ga.

10:00 AM

University of Louisville

5-2

Wisconsin

1-5

Louisville

Wisconsin

Louisville Splits on Day Two of the ACC/Big Ten Challenge

February 18, 2023 | Softball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2

Cards beat Wisconsin 2-0, fall to Illinois 2-1 in eight innings

By: Lori Harmon

ATLANTA – The University of Louisville softball team split a pair of games on day two of the ACC/Big Ten Challenge. The Cardinals defeated Wisconsin 2-0 and fell 2-1 in eight innings to Illinois Saturday at Georgia Tech's Mewborn Field.

Louisville (5-3) will wrap up the weekend Sunday at 10 a.m. against Wisconsin.

Louisville 2 - Wisconsin 0
Graduate senior Taylor Roby tossed a complete game shutout, striking out seven and scattering four hits and sophomore Easton Lotus went 2-for-4 with an RBI and senior Daisy Hess went 2-for-3 with a run to help the Cardinals to a 2-0 win over Wisconsin.

In the first game of the day, the teams played through six scoreless innings before the Cardinals broke through with two runs in the top of the seventh. Hess led off the frame with an infield single, moved to second on freshman Sarah Gordon's sacrifice bunt and scored on an RBI double off the bat of junior Vanessa Miller. Easton Lotus's infield hit sent Miller home to make the score 2-0.

Maddie Schwartz (1-4) took the loss after giving up two earned runs on eight hits and striking out five in seven innings.

Illinois 2 - Louisville 1
The Cardinals fell behind in the second inning, but graduate senior Makayla Hurst's pinch-hit RBI single tied the game in the fifth inning. The Illini (4-3) used a hit, a fielder's choice and an RBI single to plate the winning run in the bottom of the eighth.

The Illini jumped on the scoreboard in the second when a walk and two hits loaded the bases for Megan Ward's sacrifice fly.

Louisville countered in the top of the fifth when sophomore Maddi Grant delivered a two-out double and came home on a pinch-hit single by Hurst to even the score at 1-1.

The Cardinals had a chance to push a run across in the top of the seventh when sophomore Korbe Otis blasted a one-out triple to left field, but Illinois' starter Sydney Sickels retired the next two batters to hod Louisville at bay.

With neither team able to manufacture a run, the contest moved into extra innings. Louisville threatened early in the eighth when sophomore Ally Alexander earned a leadoff walk, moved to second on a sacrifice bunt by Lotus and took third on Geraghty's groundout, but a flyout ended the top of the inning.

Kelly Ryono led off the bottom of the eighth with a single and moved to third on Avrey Steiner's groundout. Rummel reached on a fielder's choice that also saw Ryono safe at third base and set up Stevie Meade's RBI hit for the 2-1 final.

For Louisville at the plate, Otis, Grant and Hurst each had a hit. Roby (1-1) took the loss allowing one earned run on two hits.

Sickels (2-0) picked up the win after giving up one earned run on three hits and striking out eight. Kelly paced the Illini offensively with a 2-for-4 showing at the plate.

NOTES:

Louisville is now 1-1 in extra-inning games
Daisy Hess has reached base safely via a hit or error in five straight games.
Vanessa Miller has now reached safely via a hit or error in four straight games.
Easton Lotus now has three multi-hit games on the season.
Taylor Roby now has 48 career wins and stands eighth on Louisville's all-time list. She needs two more to move to tie Megan Hensley (2016-19) for seventh.