Martinez, Kocon Lead Kansas Softball to 2-1 Win Over Lipscomb
March 18, 2011
CONWAY, S.C. –
Freshman pitcher Kristin Martinez tossed her sixth complete game limiting Lipscomb to just four hits and adding five strikeouts as the University of Kansas softball team defeated the Bison 2-1 Friday morning in the opening game of the Coastal Carolina Chanticleer Classic.
KU, which improved to 22-3, will play again Friday versus ProvidenceCollege at approximately 11 a.m. CT.
While Martinez did her part from the circle, the Kansas offense made the most of its opportunities from the batter’s box as junior Liz Kocon batted in both of KU’s runs while the team matched Lipscomb with four hits in the contest despite suffering 14 strikeouts from one of the country’s top pitchers in the Bison’s Whitney Kiihnl.
Senior Brittany Hile hit a line drive to left field in the fourth inning to break up a no-hitter while simultaneously putting sophomore Rosie Hull in scoring position at second base. Hull, who reached base on a walk, advanced to third when an attempted pickoff sent the ball into the outfield. Junior Liz Kocon then cleared the bases when her double to left field landed just under the glove of Lipscomb’s sliding left fielder to give the Jayhawks a 2-0 lead.
Martinez, who improved to 11-1, retired eight of the first nine Bison batters before Lipscomb got its first hit of the game in the bottom of the fourth inning, when it also scored its first run. Lipscomb led off the inning with a double to shallow left field before an RBI single to center field plated the runner. The Bison eventually put runners on the corners later in the frame but sophomore Mariah Montgomery prevented additional runs when she barely got a hold of a line drive over her head to end the inning.
Lipscomb managed just one more hit for the remainder in the game in the seventh inning and eventually had runners on second and third to potentially win the game but Martinez shut down the Bison with a strike out and then forced an easy pop fly to freshman Kendra Cullum at first base.
