May 4, 2002

Box Score

TUCSON - Lovie Jung's double off the right fence drove in pinch-runner Rebekah Quiroz with the winning run in No. 2-ranked Arizona's improbable come-from-behind victory, 3-2, over No. 8 Stanford in college softball Saturday night.

A crowd of 2,739 was treated to a tale of two games, as Stanford's Tori Nyberg handcuffed the Arizona hitters until the bottom of the seventh when Leneah Manuma and Mackenzie Vandergeest hit back-to-back pitches out of the park to open the inning and tie the game.

Nyberg had tossed a three-hitter to that point in the game and was in control until the Cats' big inning. After the home runs, Jackie Coburn was hit by a pitch and Jenny Gladding reached on a fielder's choice. Carrie Hagen singled to move Quiroz to second. Pinch-hitter Candace Abrams struck out, but Jung knocked a line drive deep to right for the winning hit.

Sarah Beeson, a former prep star at Tucson's Canyon Del Oro High School, gave the visiting team a quick 2-0 lead in the first. With one out, Jessica Mendoza walked, then Beeson nailed a line drive over the fence in right-center for her fifth home run of the year.

The Cats put runners on the corners, when Jung doubled to lead off the UA first, and later tagged and moved up on a fly out after Jennie Finch had walked, but Nyberg got Vandergeest to pop up to catcher to end the threat.

Two defensive plays helped UA pitcher Jenny Gladding avoid more runs in the SU second. First, Wildcat rightfielder Carrie Hagen threw our Jessica Allister on an apparent single. Then with two outs, Leah Nelson reached on an error and moved to third on Jessice Draemel's bloop single to short center. But UA third baseman Coburn then leaped and snagged a hard liner by leadoff batter Robin Walker for the third out.

Maureen Lecocq hit singles in the fourth and a sacrifice by Draemel put them on second and third, but Walker popped to Vandergeest in four territory for the third out.

Gladding (19-5) hung on for the victory for Arizona, which improved to 47-7 overall and 14-3 in Pac-10 play. She gave up five hits, walked five, struck out four and hit two batters. The Cardinal dropped to 40-15 and 5-12. Nyberg gave up seven hits -- four in the seventh -- and dropped to 23-9.

The two teams conclude their series at 1 p.m. Sunday in Arizona's final home game of the year. A short Senior Day ceremony for Jennie Finch, Meaghan Finnerty and manager Julie Lawler will be held after the game.