Kansas Shuts Out ULM to Take FAU Invitational Title

March 10, 2013

Box Score

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Kansas 6, Louisiana-Monroe 0
FAU Softball Stadium // Boca Raton, Fla.
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Sophomore third baseman Chanin Naudin knocked in two RBIs against the Warhawks.

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 R H E
KU 0 2 0 3 0 0 1 6 9 0
ULM 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 1
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Leaders – Batting
Kansas AB R H RBI BB HR
M. Hull 4 1 2 1 0 1
C. Naudin 3 1 2 2 0 0
Lousiana-Monroe
H. McCall 3 0 2 0 0 0
C. Dutreix 2 0 0 0 1 0
Pitching
Kansas IP H R ER BB SO
Pille (W, 7-3) 7.0 2 0 0 3 10
Louisiana-Monroe
Routzon (L, 6-5) 3.1 7 5 4 1 1
Dollar 3.2 2 1 1 2 0

BOCA RATON, Fla. – Senior left fielder Maggie Hull’s 20th career homer put the finishing touches on a perfect 5-0 weekend as Kansas downed Louisiana-Monroe, 6-0, to win the FAU Invitational Sunday morning.

Hull’s homer was the last of six runs that Kansas (19-5) tallied against Louisiana-Monroe (10-14), en route to its second tournament title of the season. Sophomore third baseman Chanin Naudin and freshman shortstop Chaley Brickey drove in two runs apiece to lead the offense and extend the Jayhawks’ win streak to six-straight.

“It was a great weekend,” head coach Megan Smith said. “We were consistent and we attacked every game. For this tournament, I thought it was one of the best fields overall in terms of the teams we played. Every team was tough and I’m very proud of the girls. They were determined to come out 5-0 and we came out 5-0.”

The Jayhawks’ strong offensive performance was matched in the circle by sophomore Alicia Pille (7-3). The right-hander carried a perfect game through four innings before issuing a leadoff walk in the bottom of the fifth. The single that followed ended the no-hit bid as well, but didn’t take away from her solid outing as the sophomore recorded her fourth shutout of the year and 12th of her career. She surrendered two walks and three hits, while racking up 10 strikeouts in the win.

“Pille looked really good today,” Smith said. “She came out last night and didn’t look good, but came back this morning very mentally tough and had good command of her pitches. She attacked their hitters and got a little confidence when our offense got rolling. She did a really good job.”

Junior Stephanie Routzon (6-5) took the loss for the Warhawks and right fielder Haley McCall collected both of the team’s hits.

After Pille struck out the side in the bottom of the first, Naudin jump started the Jayhawk offense with her first of two RBI singles. A bad throw that brought in Naudin’s hit from the outfield gave freshman catcher Alex Hugo room to dart home and Kansas took a 2-0 lead out of the second.

With Pille cruising, Kansas capitalized, strengthening its lead in the top of the fourth. Hugo started the three-run frame with a sharp single to left and senior right fielder Rosie Hull was hit with a pitch to line up base runners for Naudin and Brickey. The duo delivered with back-to-back base knocks. Naudin drove in her second run of the game right before Brickey blasted a two-run double to left centerfield to propel the Jayhawks to a 5-0 lead.

Brickey’s double prompted Routzon’s exit and reliever Savannah Dollar gave up an infield single to junior second baseman Ashley Newman before retiring the next two to end the inning. Dollar went on to throw a scoreless fifth and sixth before Hull connected on her fourth homer of the year in the top of the seventh.

The solo shot over the right field wall put Hull back in front in KU’s tight race to the RBI crown. She sits in second place with 126 with fellow senior captain Mariah Montgomery right behind her with 125. Additionally, the run that resulted from the homer tied Hull with former player and coach Tracy Bunge for the second-most career runs scored by a Jayhawk (123, 1983-86).

UP NEXT
Kansas will play in its final pre-conference tournament when the team travels to Sacramento, Calif., for the Capital Classic hosted by Sacramento State, March 15-17.

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