LAFAYETTE — Senior shortstop Nerissa Myers’ double in the sixth inning lifted the Ragin’ Cajuns softball team to a come-from-behind 5-4 win over the National Pro Fastpitch All-Stars Saturday night at Lamson Park in the 2012 NPF Back to School Tour stop at the facility.
A crowd of 1,285 witnessed the exhibition contest continuing the community’s support of world class softball.
Sophomore ace pitcher Jordan Wallace earned the win in the circle for the Cajuns, throwing all seven innings, giving up four runs on eight hits.
Louisiana’s six hits came off the bat of six different players. The biggest hit of the night was Myers’ deep double to left field in the bottom of the sixth that brought home the winning run.
Myers, who posted a team-best two RBI’s, was named the Ragin’ Cajuns “Star of the Game” presented by Wilson. Ashley Charters, who scored two runs and drew two walks, was named the NPF’s “Star of the Game” presented by Schutt.
It was only the NPF’s third loss during the three-year history of the Back to School Tour, which is now 57-games old. UL joins Oklahoma (2011) and Michigan (2012) as the only schools to defeat the NPF All-Stars.
The NPF got on the board in the first inning as Jenn Salling walked, advanced to second off a wild pitch, and scored on an Andrea Duran RBI sacrifice fly. Senior centerfielder Brianna Cherry made a diving catch, minimizing the damage and holding the All-Stars to just one run.
UL came back with two runs of their own in the bottom half of the first inning as Myers walked and freshman Sara Corbello hit a towering homerun into the right center bleachers.
The NPF tied the game 2-2 in the second after Francesca Enea and Kelsey Bruder both drew walks, advanced off an Ashley Charter’s single, and scored off a Wallace wild pitch. Wallace was able to settle down and retired the next two batters.
The All-Stars took the lead in the top of the fourth off Kelly Kretschman’s single to right field, bringing home Charters who walked and advanced to second off Jenn Salling’s bunt single.
The NPF added to their lead in the top of the sixth after Kelsey Bruder shoved a single up the middle to bring home Charters who reached on a fielding error.
DiSalvatore and Duran continued the rally, picking up back-to-back singles. Wallace was able to retire the next batter and hold the NPF to a 4-2 lead heading into the bottom of the sixth.
Freshman Shellie Landry started the Cajuns sixth inning rally with a double to right centerfield and Matte Haack’s single to left advanced her to third. The All-Stars replaced starting pitcher Hillary Bach and placed Jamee Juarez in the circle,
Juarez struck out the first batter she faced. Leandra Maly then sent a chopper back to Juarez in the circle and the Cajuns plated a run when the toss at home went wide. The next at bat, Myers doubled deep to left field, clearing the bases and catapulting the Cajuns to a 5-4 lead.
The All-Stars made things interesting in the top of the seventh, getting a pair of runners on first and second with two outs before Wallace induced a foul out and Myers made a nice grab near the brick wall down the left field line to register the final out.
The Cajuns continue their fall season Wednesday, October 24, welcoming LSU-Eunice to Lamson Park at 4:30 p.m.
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 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:
The United States Specialty Sports Association (USSSA), 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 News!
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