May 6, 2005

Box Score

RENO, Nev. - The No. 16/16 Fresno State softball team handed head coach Margie Wright her 1,000th school win when the Bulldogs posted a 5-3 night cap win over Nevada in Western Athletic Conference play.

Clinching at least a share of the WAC title, Fresno State used the long ball once again as the Bulldogs scored five runs on 12 hits.

Freshman left hander Amanda Nesbitt notched her eighth win of the season after allowing three runs (one earned) on seven hits with a walk and five strikeouts in 5.0 innings of work. Senior All-American Jamie Southern, who started the game as the designated player, would notch her third save of the season when she walked two and struck out two in 2.0 innings.

With 11 career saves, Southern moved into her eighth NCAA Division I career pitching category and sits No. T25 overall.

Nevada pitcher Jordan McPherson made her second straight start of the day. She allowed five runs on 12 hits, walked five and struck out two as she dropped to 11-10 on the year.

Fresno State scored two runs in the first, two in the third and recorded its final run in the fifth. Nevada, which scored three runs on seven hits, picked up a run in the second and had two in the third.

Like the first game, junior All-America shortstop Christina Clark got on base was forced out at second on a fielder's choice by Southern before sophomore catcher Nichole Willis knocked in the first runs. Willis hit her second home run of the day and sixth of the season when she hit a two-run opposite field shot.

With the Bulldogs up 2-0, Nevada cut the lead in half in the second inning as left fielder Ashley Ablahani picked up a one-out RBI single.

In the third, Fresno State scored two runs on four hits. Southern led off with a double to right before Willis grounded out. Senior third baseman Leticia Pacheco followed a RBI single to right to plate Southern. While Pacheco advanced to second on the throw home, she later went to third on a ground out by freshman first baseman Kristin Sylvester. Pacheco would score on the same play as the throw back to the third base bag got away.

Nevada would get two runs back in the bottom half of the frame and get within one of the Bulldogs. With two outs and a runner on, Nesbitt fielded an easy come backer but threw the ball away on the play to first. With a runners on the corner, catcher Lindsey Hall doubled down the right field line to plate two.

In the fourth, the Bulldogs got the run back when Clark hit a monstrous home run that not only cleared the dead center field fence but over the batting cages as well in center. The home run was her 13th of the season as she moved up to No. 22 all-time in NCAA Division I history with her 51st career long ball.

After Nesbitt yielded a base hit to start off the bottom of the sixth, Southern came in and struck out two of the three batters faced. In the seventh, she got three of the four Nevada hitters to ground out to seal the deal.

Fresno State (37-10, 13-1 WAC) and Nevada (22-27, 8-6 WAC) will wrap up the series tomorrow afternoon with a single game at 2:00 p.m.