March 5, 2005

Box Score

ATHENS, Ga. - The University of Maryland softball team rallied from a four-run deficit and came away with a 5-4 victory over No. 13/17 Georgia at the Red and Black Challenge in Athens, Ga., Saturday afternoon. Freshman outfielder Jenny Belak drove in the go-ahead run in the bottom of the seventh inning, giving Maryland its fifth unanswered run of the game and its fourth victory of the season. The Terps advanced to the championship game of the Red and Black Challenge, where they will have a rematch with the Bulldogs Sunday at 2 p.m.

Georgia (12-7) had built a 4-0 lead after five innings, despite a strong pitching performance by Terp starter Abbey Welch. Georgia pitcher Michelle Green (5-2), meanwhile, had a no-hitter going through five innings, but the bid was ended by Nneka Cardoza, who singled up the middle with two outs in the bottom of the sixth. The next batter, Terp first baseman Lindsay Klein, stepped up and blasted her first home run of the season (seventh of her career) over the wall in center field to make the score 4-2 in favor of Georgia. Klein continues to pace the Terps offensively, as she currently owns a nine-game hit streak and leads the Terps in batting average (.400), hits (12) and RBI (4).

Welch (3-1) handled the Bulldog lineup in the top of the seventh and ended the day with five strikeouts. She earned her team-high third victory of the year and second of the Red and Black Challenge.

Down two runs in the bottom of the seventh, Maryland's comeback began with a Lauren Pollock single up the middle. Through four games of the Red and Black Challenge, Pollock is 4-for-12 (.333) with an RBI. Freshman Whitney Reigel entered the game to pinch run for Pollock and the next batter Nikki Smith fouled out to right field. At this point, Crystal Rizzuto stepped up and reached first base on a fielder's choice, as Reigel was thrown out at second base.

The next batter, Natalie Grossman, used her good speed to reach first base on an error by Georgia second baseman Katie Lewis, and Rizzuto advanced to second base.

Crystal Tweedy was next up and she knocked a triple to center field, scoring Rizzuto and Grossman to even the score at 4-4. Jenny Belak stepped up next and hit a single to left field, scoring Tweedy and winning the game for Maryland.

For Belak, it was her second-career RBI, while the triple was Tweedy's third of her career.

Maryland and Georgia will have a rematch Sunday afternoon in Athens in the championship game of the Red and Black Challenge. First pitch is slated for 2 p.m. and Gametracker is available at www.umterps.com. Live audio and video can be accessed (with a subscription) through www.georgiadogs.com.