Wisconsin Clipped by Penn State, 3-1
April 29, 2006 | Softball
The University of Wisconsin softball team couldn't hold on to its 1-0 lead in the seventh, giving up a three-run home run to fall to Penn State 3-1 Saturday afternoon at Goodman Softball Complex.
With two outs and runners on the corners, Danielle Kinley smashed a homer to leftfield to give the Nittany Lions (34-13, 7-9 Big Ten) the walk-off victory and series split.
Junior Athena Vasquez's solo home run in the fifth inning was the lone mark for the Badgers (21-20, 5-9), who remain in ninth place in the league standings.
Junior Eden Brock was just one strike away from her fifth complete-game shutout of the year, but instead she fell to 17-11. Meanwhile, PSU's Ashley Esparza (9-4) struck out seven and walked just one for the win.
Vasquez's second home run of the year looked like it would be enough, especially after the bottom of the fifth when Penn State had one out and runners on the corners. That's when Brock struck out the remaining batters to get UW out of a jam.
But in the seventh, the Nittany Lions were able to produce and subsequently stay ahead of Wisconsin in the standings.
The Badgers continue their weekend home stand with a doubleheader vs. Ohio State at noon Sunday.
