May 9, 2004

Box Score

Birmingham, Ala. - With the OVC tournament on the horizon, the Otahks couldn't hold their early lead over Samford, as Samford completed their three game sweep of Southeast today. Errors proved costly as the Bulldogs edged out Southeast 3-2 on two unearned runs.

Samford (27-31, 17-9 OVC) got on the board with an unearned run in the first inning. Trisha Holman reached on a throwing error, stole second and scored on a double by catcher Bridgett Smith.

Southeast(15-34, 10-14 OVC) rallied back to take the lead with single runs in the second and third innings. Leftfielder Jaime Birk sparked the offense with single up the left side, moving to second on a sac bunt. Then designated player Charlene Ramirez drove another single down the left field line to drive home Birk to tie the game.

The squad went back at it in the third, posting three hits and one run. In the third, the Otahkians loaded the bases with no one out on back-to-back-to-back singles from Stephanie Mata, Suzi Lair and Victoria Torrez. J. Birk then reached first on a fielder's choice, while Suzi Lair scored the go-ahead run, beating the catcher to home plate on the force play.

The Bulldogs tied the game in the fourth as leftfielder Erin Hall reached on a throwing error that allowed Smith to score from third base. In the fifth, the Bulldogs put together four-straight hits with to drive in pitcher/secondbaseman Erin Landsburg from third with the game winner.

Ramirez fueled the squad offensively today, going 2-for-3 at the plate, and recording the squad's sole RBI.

Amy Fahnestock took the loss for SEMO to drop to 9-12 on another complete game effort. She pitched six innings allowing only one earned run, on seven hits. Landsburg (11-14) pitched six innings allowing two runs, one earned, on seven hits. While both starting pitchers struck out four. Susanna Meyer came on in the seventh to record the save.

The Otahks conclude the regular season in sixth place in the Ohio Valley Conference, while the Bulldogs finish fourth. Southeast will face No. 3 seed Tennessee Tech on Tursday, May 13 in the opening round of the OVC Tournament. The tournament will be hosted by regular season champion Eastern Kentucky in Richmond, Ky. Check back for more information, as game times will be released Monday...