Feb. 23, 2002

Box Score

TUCSON--Arizona's Jennie Finch looked shaky for one inning, then settled down to allow no hits the rest of the way in tying the NCAA record with her 50th consecutive winning decision, helping beat Northern Iowa, 12-2, in UA's second Saturday game of the Worth Wildcat Invitational softball tournament.

Finch tied a mark set by Rebecca Aase of Florida State, who won 50 games from 1991-93. She struck out nine and allowed only two hits.

Lindsay Wood led off with a double over UA left fielder Carrie Hagen, who was playing shallowly, and two outs later Tracy Davis hit a two-run home run to left left to give the Panthers a 2-0 lead in the first.

But Arizona batted around in its half of the inning to take a 5-2 lead. Lovie Jung led off with a stand-up triple into the right corner. Carrie Hagen walked and Finch singled to left to score Jung. After an out, Mackenzie Vandergeest reached on an error, then Jackie Coburn was hit by a pitch to force in one run. Candace Abrams singled in Finch and Vandergeest, then Allyson Von Liechtenstein singled in Coburn.

Finch and Leneah Manuma hit solo home runs in the bottom of the second to increase the lead to 7-2. It was Finch's sixth of the year and Manuma's 10th. In the third inning, two-run singles by Jung and Finch pushed the score beyond the mercy-rule eight run advantage, 12-2.