March 25, 2001

Box Score

MARIETTA, Ga. - The weekend was not supposed end this way for the Maryland softball squad. The Terrapins (21-13), who received a bye to the quarterfinal round after a 4-0 pool play record, fell 8-0 to a pumped-up Illinois (26-11) team early Sunday, ending a weekend of well-played softball at the Georgia Tech Buzz Classic.

Aggressive at the plate, the Illini got on the scoreboard in the top of the first. After a single and a walk, Illinois' second baseman Katie O'Connell gave her team a 3-0 advantage with a drive over the left field fence. The Terrapins were able to make solid contact but could not cross any runners.

Miscues in the field hurt the Terrapins in the fourth. Three errors, an infield single and two doubles led to five unearned Illini runs, and the game ended in the fifth as the Terps were unable to score. Junior Amanda Bettker (St. Petersburg, Fla.) suffered her third loss of the season but struck out six in four innings.

The Terrapins conclude the weekend with a 4-1 record at the Buzz Classic -- their best effort since taking second place in 1999 (6-1) and second-best mark in seven years of participation at the event.

On the weekend, senior hurler Jenn Shellhammer (Slatington, Pa.) was 2-0, with victories over Troy State and Connecticut. The intense competitor allowed only one run and six base hits in 14 innings for a 0.50 ERA. Shellhammer struck out a total of nine.

Freshman Monica Cyphert (Warren, Ohio) put in a scorching 7-15 (.467) effort. Her weekend included two doubles, two RBI, three runs scored and the pitching victory over Cleveland State. In that 6-0 shutout the newcomer struck out four and allowed only three hits.

Sophomore Jillian Callaway (Brandywine, Md.) was a solid 4-14 (.286) with two doubles, three RBI and four runs scored.

Juniors Kiesha Pickeral (Hughesville, Md.) and Beth Radford (Dunkirk, Md.) both displayed their power with two home runs apiece. Pickeral hit at a .278 clip with three runs and three RBI, while Radford scored four runs and drove in three.

Maryland is next in action in a doubleheader at Morgan State on Wednesday, March 28 at 2:30 p.m. The Terps then host Maine on Friday at 1 p.m. in College Park before travelling to the Princeton Invitational on March 31.

Contact: Mark Fratto
301-314-7064 (phone)
301-314-9094 (fax)
301-314-TERP (FanFone)
fratto@wam.umd.edu