Beavers Advance to Regional Final With 5-0 Win
May 21, 2005 | Softball
Kelly Peterson hit a grand slam and Brianne McGowan pitched her second complete game of the day to help Oregon State defeat UW-Green Bay 5-0 Saturday afternoon and advance to the regional final against DePaul Sunday.
The Phoenix (27-18), who upset the sixth-ranked Beavers 1-0 Friday night, were eliminated from the regional with the loss.
After a scoreless opening four innings of play, OSU got on the board in the top of the fifth on a sacrifice fly by pinch hitter Ingrid Lochelt. Petersen added the insurance in the sixth, socking a grand slam off of reliever Stephanie Hansen who had struck her out with the bases loaded to end Friday night's UWGB victory.
McGowan struck out 10 and scattered three hits just after having fanned 16 in a win over Wisconsin.
Oregon State and DePaul will match up at 11 a.m. Sunday morning for the right to advance to the Super Regionals. The Beavers need to defeat the Blue Demons twice to advance, while DePaul needs to win either the first game or the if necessary 1:30 p.m. rematch.
Game Notes
Oregon State improves to 42-15 on the season and 2-1 in post-season play this year ' the Beavers are now 19-13 in seven NCAA appearances ' OSU takes on DePaul in the regional final Sunday at 11 a.m. and must defeat the Blue Demons twice to advance to the super regional
Wisconsin-Green Bay ends its season 27-18 and 1-2 in NCAA play ' this was the first NCAA appearance for the Phoenix
Kelly Petersen's fifth-inning grand slam for Oregon State was the first of her career ' her four RBI also tie a career high
Winning pitcher Brianne McGowan pitched two complete games on the afternoon ' she struck out 26 batters in 14 innings pitched Saturday (16 vs. Wisconsin and 10 vs. Wisconsin-Green Bay) ' it was the 11th complete game shutout of her career, tying her for second in school history
Post-game Quotations
Oregon State Head Coach Kirk Walker
Opening Statement:
'Obviously a much better day offensively for us today. Brianne (McGowan) did a nice job on the mound. I think we came out better today and swung the bats better.'
On UW-Green Bay's performance:
'(I have) just a ton of respect for them and their performance here. Just an absolutely great effort, a great team, well coached. I just want to acknowledge Jean (Rivett) and her staff. I have a ton of respect for coming in and doing what they did. Not that it's something that they're not capable of, but nobody knew anything about them, and I think that worked to their advantage and I think they used it to their advantage. My hat's off to them. I think they did a tremendous job. They're certainly deserving of being in this regional. '
Oregon State second baseman Kelly Petersen
On her grand slam after striking out with the bases loaded to end Friday night's game:
'I was really excited just to get that opportunity again, having almost the exact same situation as I had last night. I was really comfortable and confident going up to the plate the next time ' Today (Stephanie Hansen) was having a little bit of trouble finding the plate, so I was just looking for anything close to get the ball out of the infield and get the runs in.'
Wisconsin-Green Bay Head Coach Jean Rivett
Opening Statement:
'All of the credit goes to Oregon State. They played a tough game today. We just didn't get the hits we needed to. Our kids fought hard up until the sixth inning, it was a 1-0 game up until then. We have nothing to hang our heads about and that's what we've been telling our kids. We're proud of what we've accomplished. This is a great experience for our ballplayers and it 's a wonderful stepping stone for the university softball program.'
UWGB first baseman Lynsy Erickson
On facing Brianne McGowan:
'She's big, 6'3' coming at you is a lot. She's got a good riseball. If you lay off of it you're OK, but it 's hard to lay off of because it's real good, and a good changeup to follow up with that. She tough, there's a reason that she was one of the best pitchers in the Pac-10. We just hung with her and tried to do what we could, tried to stay disciplined in there, but she's a good pitcher and we can't take anything away from her.
