PENSACOLA, Fla. (Feb 14, 2010) - The No. 15 Nova Southeastern softball team finished the University of West Florida Regional Crossover with two extra inning wins.
The Sharks (5-1) defeated the North Alabama Lions, 7-6 before Rachel Talenfeld (Jr., Fort Lauderdale, Fla.) hit the game winning single in the Sharks' 6-5 victory over the West Florida Argonauts. Both games took eight innings to complete.
"We passed the test today," Head Coach Lesa Boneè. "We were tested in both extra inning games, we never quit and we finished strong."
Against North Alabama, Noemi Luciani (Sr., Miami, Fla.) was a perfect 3-for-3 with two runs, both of which were scored off errors. She finished the day batting 5-for-6 from the field with three runs. Patty Rivero (Sr., Miami, Fla.) also played well, batting 2-for-3 with an RBI.
Lauren Lopez (Sr., Miami, Fla.) had her best offensive performance of the year against UWF with two solo home runs. She batted 2-for-4 in the game with three runs scored. Talenfeld had a solid outing against the Argos, batting 3-for-4 along with the game-winning RBI.
In the day's first game against the Lions, the Sharks struck first in the opening inning and scored two more runs in the third when Luciani and Talenfeld both scored unearned runs. The Lions tied the game that same inning when Andrea Palmer hit a three run home run with two outs on the board and two strikes in the count.
The Sharks would regain the lead with a run in both the fourth and sixth inning. NSU had a two run lead with two outs in the bottom of the seventh but North Alabama's Emily Barnes hit a two run single to send the game into an extra inning.
In the eighth inning, Brittney Lamb (Sr.,West Palm Beach, Fla.) hit a double to center field that drove in Jessica Hernandez (Sr., Miami, Fla.). She would later score the winning run off a wild pitch. North Alabama scored once in the bottom of the eighth but could not climb back into the game. Lexi Sarradet (Jr., Miami, Fla.) earned her second win of the season.
In the next game, the Sharks found themselves in a one run hole after three innings. The Sharks took control of the game in the fourth when Luciani and Talenfeld scored runs off a throwing error. Lopez followed up Talenfeld's go ahead run with her second bomb to left center field.
The Argo's would score one run in both the sixth and seventh inning to send the game into extra innings. With a runner placed in scoring position, Dani Caron (Sr., Wellington, Fla.) shut down three straight batters to keep UWF scoreless.
Caron would be placed on second base in the bottom of the eighth and would score the game winning run. She struck out six batters while improving her record to 3-0.
The Sharks will return to the field next week when they travel to Clearwater, Fla. for the Eckerd Softball Tournament. They will face off against No. 6 Valdosta State Friday, Feb. 19 at 3 pm.
