April 17, 1999
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind.-- What goes around comes around. A week ago, the Purdue softball team (24-18, 5-6 Big Ten) rallied in the bottom of the seventh inning to beat Michigan State. On Saturday, Wisconsin (20-12, 4-3) gave Purdue a dose of its own medicine, scoring five runs in its last at-bat for a 5-3 victory over the Boilers in game number two. Wisconsin won the first game 6-2. The final matchup of the three-game series will be at 1 p.m. on Sunday at the Varsity Softball Complex.
"We've been of both sides of that coin," Purdue head coach Carol Bruggeman said. "We've had our fair share of seventh inning comebacks and now the other teams have had their fair share too."
Freshman pitcher Meagan Dooley (12-8) took a 3-0 shutout into the bottom of the seventh inning of the second game. After retiring the first batter, the Badgers recorded three straight singles to load the bases and scored the first run on a fielding error by Dooley. The next batter, Amanda Berg, launched the first offering from Dooley over the center field fence for a grand slam to end the game.
"We played defensively all day," Bruggeman said. "We were on our heels offensively and defensively. We were just hoping to get through the second game with a shutout going into the seventh inning."
Berg also hit a home run in game one. The redshirt junior took a low pitch from freshman Nicole Crouse (11-9) and sent it over the right center field fence for a three-run shot. On the day, Berg was 6-for-8 from the plate with seven RBI.
Highlights for the Boilers included pitcher Crystal Inman's performance. The pitcher threw 1 2/3 innings of perfect relief and Dooley's day of 6 1/3 shutout innings.
Wisconsin nearly had three home runs on the day. In the second game, Julie Borchard hit an apparent line drive home run off the foul pole in left field, but the home plate umpire ruled it a foul ball. After much dispute and arguing, the play stood as a foul ball and returned to the plate where she later grounded out.
The Boilers (5-6) now stand in seventh place in the Big Ten standings, but are only one game behind three teams tied for fourth place with a .500 record.
"Hopefully, we'll bounce back tomorrow," Bruggeman said. "We'll see what we're made of."
R H E
Wisconsin 6 8 1
Purdue 2 4 4
Purdue 3 4 1
Wisconsin 5 9 3