The Triangle

Issue date: 4/20/07 Section: Sports

Media Credit: Pete Croteau

With the snow and cold Philadelphia has received over the last two months, it has been tough for the Drexel softball team to practice outside and play games locally this season. On the other hand, Georgia State has played twice as many games as the Dragons, and they should have been fully prepared for this Drexel team. The Dragons turned in two gutsy performances to pull off a sweep over Georgia State, April 14 at Drexel Field.

The highlight of the night for the Dragons (13-11, 6-5 Colonial Athletic Association) was in the bottom of the seventh inning of game one. The Panthers (25-22, 5-6 CAA) were leading 5-2 with two outs when the Dragons started the hit parade. Lena Aiken and Brianne Brown both got hits to set up Sandi Wambold, who singled to center, scoring Aiken. After an infield hit by Molly Dacey, Ashley Botelho blooped a hit to score two more runs and tie the game at five. Kristen Beaver ripped the first pitch she saw for the game-winning hit as the Dragons stole one from the grasp of the Panthers.

"It was a full team effort," Drexel Head Coach Kim Camara said. "They have to believe that every time they step on the field, they're going to win, and if they believe it, it'll happen. It is the second time this year that we've come to the bottom of the seventh, with two outs and scored four runs to win a game in the conference. That's huge for us."

Amanda Shattuck went the distance in game one, giving up six hits and five earned runs. Her performance was remarkable considering she had to escape trouble nearly every inning because she issued nine walks. With the win, Shattuck improved to 3-3.

"Defensively, we played behind Amanda very well," Camara said. "Nine walks isn't, obviously, ideal, but we were able to keep a lot of them from scoring just with some good defense and some key plays."

Christina Rodriguez supplied the power with a two-run home run in the second inning.

In game two, the Panthers were out for revenge, as they scored two quick runs off of Katrina Gaudier. The Dragons were able to manufacture a run in the bottom half of the inning to pull within one.

After the rough start, Gaudier settled down and kept the Panthers off the board for the remainder of the game. Like Shattuck in game one, Gaudier threw a complete game in the second contest, scattering seven hits.

Thanks to Gaudier keeping the game close, the Dragons took a 3-2 lead in the bottom of the fourth thanks to an error by the Panthers' shortstop.

Gaudier managed to keep the Panthers at bay for the rest of the ballgame and improved to 7-4. For her efforts, she earned her third CAA Rookie of the Week Award.

The Dragons will be in action April 21-22 against James Madison in Harrisonburg, Va. They return home the next weekend to play Hofstra in a three-game set.

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