May 4, 2008

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CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. - (Sunday, May 04, 2008) The rollercoaster that was the 2008 Redhawks softball season came to a heartbreaking close on Sunday afternoon. The Redhawks scored two runs with two outs in the seventh inning to force extra innings before falling 8-4 in eight innings to Ohio Valley Conference regular season champion Jacksonville State to ruin Senior Day at the Southeast Softball Complex.

Down to their final out and trailing 4-2, Head Coach Lana Richmond inserted her ace pitcher senior Elaine Fisher (St. Peters, MO/Francis Howell North) to pinch hit. Fisher entered the at bat with seven career at bats. Fisher lined a 2-2 pitch into right-center for a stand-up double and her second career hit. Michelle Summers (Glendale, CA/Hoover) then followed with her 79th career walk to tie Tami Hebert for first on the all-time career charts. Jennifer Vasquez (Placentia, CA/El Dorado) then reached on an error by third baseman Whitney Elder to load the bases for Megan McDonald (Cape Girardeau, MO/Cape Central).

McDonald then singled to center to plate Fisher and Summers for the tying runs. That hit knocked out Gamecocks (35-14, 22-4 OVC) starter Ashley Eliasson and Melissa Dowling came in the game and got Alex Ramirez (Corona, CA/El Modena) to ground out to end the Redhawks (24-28, 11-16 OVC) comeback threat.

Any momentum the Redhawks had from the seventh inning quickly disappeared as the Gamecocks collected four runs in the top of the eighth highlighted by Rachel Fleming's two-run double. Dowling retired the side in the bottom of the eighth to end the Redhawks season and the career's of five emotional seniors.

The Redhawks held an early 2-0 lead when Allie Borowiak (Nashville, IL/John A. Logan CC) collected her fifth homerun of the season. Borowiak drilled a two-run shot over the leftfield fence in the second inning for the early advantage.

The Gamecocks answered with two runs in the fourth and two more runs in the sixth courtesy of a Chrissy O'Neal two-run homerun.

Fisher (19-20) suffered the loss in her final appearance. She made her 110th career start to tie Traci Eudaley for first on the all-time career charts. She allowed six runs on 10 hits in six innings and struckout four. The Redhawks all-time career strikeout leader finished her career with 501 strikeouts.

Dowling (23-9) received the win in relief. She threw 1.1 innings of perfect softball to secure the Gamecocks win.

Lauren Bradley (Overland Park, KS/Shawnee Mission South) went 2-4 with a run scored and was joined by Ramirez as Redhawks who collected multiple hits.

McDonald went 1-4 with two RBIs moving her into second on the school's all-time career charts for RBIs with 120 RBIs. McDonald finishes the season with a .406 batting average which ranks fourth on the school's single season list. She is only the fourth Redhawks player to hit over .400 in a season. Her 67 hits this season is tied for second most in a season.

McDonald also ends her career hitting safely in her final nine games.

Summers finishes her career as the all-time leader in at bats, doubles, runs, homeruns, RBIs, walks and total bases.

Kayla Collins continued her huge series against the Redhawks as she went 3-4 with three runs scored. She went 6-11 with six RBIs and four runs scored in the series. O'Neal went 2-4 with two RBIs and finished 7-12 in the series.

The Redhawks fall to 0-18 all-time against their rivals from down south.