Box Score May 22, 2010
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Postgame Interviews
COLLEGE PARK, Md. - With a 5-2 victory over the Maryland Terrapins in Saturday's evening Regional Semi Final, Fordham will advance to the College Park Regional Final against the No. 14 seed, Oklahoma.
The Rams defeated Maryland for the second time in two days after losing to Oklahoma earlier in the day. Fordham rallied back from scoring just one run against the Sooners to scoring five against the Terps.
Junior Beckah Wiggins (Conklin, N.Y./Susquehanna Valley) gave Fordham the go-ahead runs in the top of the third inning with a double to right center field, scoring two runs. Wiggins' two-RBI were the first RBI since she set Fordham's single-season RBI record on May 2. Wiggins now has 60 RBI for the season, two away from breaking the single-season Atlantic 10 record.
Sophomore Jen Mineau (Schaghticoke, N.Y./Hoosic Valley Central) pitched her third complete game of the weekend. Against the Terps, Mineau recorded seven strikeouts, six swinging for her 34th win of the season. Mineau has 498 strikeouts on the season and has struck out the side 48 times in 276.1 innings pitched.
With the win, Fordham advanced to 49-11 on the season. Maryland falls to 34-24 after defeating Syracuse in game four stay alive and face the Rams for the second time.
Fordham will play Oklahoma in Sunday's College Park Regional Final at noon on Sunday. Oklahoma and Fordham played earlier on Saturday, the Sooners got a solo homer over Fordham for the eventual 1-0 victory.
Changing the game up from this afternoon, Fordham struck first as Jocelyn Dearborn (New Milford, Pa./Blue Ridge) and led off with a double down the left field line. Maryland started with pitcher Kerry Hickey on the rubber, but changed during Jamie LaBovick's (Peoria, Ariz./Sunrise Mountain) at bat in the first inning after Hickey threw an illegal pitch, which advanced Dearborn to third. LaBovick followed with a long fly ball that reached the edge of centerfield, scoring Dearborn with a sacrifice hit.
No runs scored for either team through the next two frames, despite Fordham loading the bases on one out. Wiggins led off the inning with a walk and classmate Meghan Shager (Conklin, N.Y./Susquehanna Valley) popped one to shallow centerfield that fell right in the hole for a single. After an out, designated player sophomore Nicole Callahan (Freehold, N.J./Freehold Township) hit a shallow hit through the left side. Fordham left them hanging with no runs scored as the next two batters got out.
Maryland tied the score at one run, as Marisha Branson hit a solo home run over the right field fence to lead off the bottom of the second.
Fordham got the runs they were looking for in the top of the third inning as Wiggins hit a two-RBI double to centerfield to score LaBovick and senior Erin Fisher (Woodinville, Wash./Woodinville). LaBovick led off the inning with a hit down the third base line the fell fair but took a bounce and rolled into the left field corner. LaBovick made it safely to second for her 14th double of the season and made it around to third on Pellechio's ground out to the pitcher. Fisher got on base with a walk, her 29th of the season. Both Fisher and LaBovick were ready to run on Wiggins' hit. Fordham took a 3-1 lead.
In the bottom of the fifth, Mineau struck out three of the four batters to keep the Terps off the bases and preserve Fordham's two-run lead.
Fordham took a three-run lead in the sixth inning as Dearborn tallied her second double of the game, this time to centerfield. Dearborn's hit scored sophomore Lindsey Kay Bright (Federal Way, Wash./Decatur), who had singled to the shortstop in her at bat and beat out the throw to be safe at first.
In the next frame, Maryland got a run on the board as Sara Acosta bowled over catcher Meghan Shager (Conklin, N.Y./Susquehanna Valley) at the plate. Acosta was nearly thrown out by a dagger from Bright. The ball reached way ahead of Acosta, but the run counted and Maryland cut Fordham's lead to two. Bright kept another Terrapin run from crossing the plate as she slid in for a catch in left field to end the inning.
In the top of the seventh, Shager led off the inning with a single to the right field line. She was called out on her run to second base, interfering with the play. Sophomore Jessica Richards (Trabuco Canyon, Calif./Mission Viejo) got on base with a fielder's choice, during the play with Shager. Richards was able to score from first base as designated player Nicole Callahan (Freehold, N.J./Freehold Township) ripped a triple to right center. Callahan's hit was the insurance the Rams needed as they went up 5-2 on the Terps.
Mineau took it into her own hands in the bottom of the seventh as she struck out the side for the 48th time this season. All three Terrapin batters went down swinging.
Dearborn was 2-for-3 with an RBI and a run, LaBovick was 2-for-4, Shager was 3-for-4 and Fisher was 1-for-3 with a run. Callahan was 2-for-4 with an RBI and Wiggins was 1-for-3 with 2 RBI.
Fordham and Oklahoma will face off at noon on the Robert E. Taylor Stadium for the College Park Regional Final. Syracuse and Maryland were eliminated on Saturday.
Fordham needs to take two games from Oklahoma to move on to next week's Super Regional.
