The Pride take on the Chicago Bandits for the final game of the series tonight (July 2nd) at The Ballpark at Rosemont at 8:05 pm ET. Photo by Jade Hewitt.
ROSEMONT, Ill.– July 2, 2015 – Two nights ago, it was Cat Osterman who turned in a terrific performance in the circle for the Pride. Last night, it was Monica Abbott’s turn to deliver a gem for the Chicago Bandits. The Bandits ace tossed a complete game, three-hit shutout in a 7-0 victory, giving the Pride their first loss of the series.
Keilani Ricketts, now 2-1, was charged with the loss after pitching the first four innings of the game. Hannah Rogers would only see a portion of the 5th inning before Andi Williamson threw the final 1.2 innings in relief.
Abbott, now 4-1, was dominant against a potent Pride lineup fanning nine of the 26 batters she faced. Natalie Hernandez provided a clutch pinch-hit, two-RBI double for the Bandits, who improved to 14-6 on the season. The Pride dropped to 10-5.
After a scoreless first inning, the Bandits opened up in the second: Courtesy of an RBI-double to the left field corner by Taylor Edwards that scored Danielle Zymkowitz all the way from first base.
The Bandits then struck for three runs in the fourth inning to give Abbott plenty of support. Following an intentional walk issued to Edwards, Natalie Hernandez came on to pinch-hit for Brenna Moss and delivered in a big way. She sprayed a liner to the right-center gap that glanced off the outstretched glove of Pride right fielder Kelly Kretschman, scoring two runs. That gave the Bandits a 3-0 lead and Moss, who re-entered as a pinch-runner, later came around to score by stealing home when Megan Blank intentionally got into a rundown between first and second base.
The Bandits tacked on three more runs in the fifth to put the game out of reach. Tammy Williams had a two-RBI double and Edwards added another RBI-single to push the lead to 7-0.
The Pride will look to leave the series 3-1 after winning the first two games against the Bandits on Monday and Tuesday night. The two teams meet again tonight (July 2nd 2015) at 8:05 p.m ET for the final game of the four-game set. To purchase tickets, visit ussssapride.com or call the box-office at The Ballpark at Rosemont at (877) 722-6348.
For all information about the USSSA Pride and the 2015 National Pro Fastpitch (NPF) season, visit the team website www.dev.usssapride.com and follow the Pride all season long on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram!
About USSSA Florida Pride:
The USSSA Florida Pride is a professional franchise in the National Pro Fastpitch League that is owned and operated by USSSA. The amateur organization of USSSA has multi-sport coverage and encompasses teams and players from the United States and abroad.
About the NPF:
National Pro Fastpitch is headquartered in Nashville, TN. The league, created to give elite female fastpitch players the opportunity to pursue a professional career in their chosen sport, has operated since 1997 under the names of Women’s Pro Fastpitch (WPF) and Women’s Pro Softball League (WPSL). NPF is the Official Development Partner of Major League Baseball in the category of women’s fastpitch softball since 2002.
About USSSA:
USSSA is headquartered in Osceola County, Florida. USSSA is the World’s Largest Multi-sport Athletic Organization. Founded in 1968, USSSA has grown to over 3.7 million participants, competing in 13 nationally sanctioned sports including Baseball, Fastpitch, Slow Pitch, Karate, Basketball, Soccer and more! For more information on USSSA and to register your team visit USSSA.com. Also be sure to visit USSSAToday.com for the latest USSSA.
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