April 24, 2003
Box Score
Chicago, Ill. - UIC took one of the hottest teams in the country to the wall on Thursday night, but fell just short of its bid to upset visiting Notre Dame, falling 3-2 to the Fighting Irish at Flames Field.
Notre Dame (29-11), which has now won 19 straight games, had to rally back from a 2-0 deficit in the final two innings, tying the score with two in the sixth before scoring the winning run on a Flames (16-32) fielding error in the top of the seventh inning.
UIC junior pitcher Alison Aguilar was strong in the circle for the second straight outing, but came away empty handed, allowing two earned runs on nine hits while striking out five. She is now 9-15 on the season.
Carrie Wisen tossed three innings of scoreless relief, surrendering just three hits, to pick up the win for the Fighting Irish. She improved to 6-2 this year with the victory.
Aguilar got UIC out of a bases loaded jam in the first, then the Flames loaded the bases themselves in the bottom of the frame. Unlike the Irish, UIC was able to push home a run as Alycia Creese drew a walk to score Michelle Miller.
With the score still 1-0 Flames in the bottom of the fifth inning, Notre Dame went to the bullpen, bringing in sophomore Steffany Stenglein to relieve starter Heather Booth.
Rookie Joyce Cathey capitalized on the switch by taking Stenglein's first offering over the left field wall for her second home run of the season to stake the Flames to a 2-0 lead.
Stenglein would face two more batters, who both singled, before Wisen entered for the Irish.
She quickly squelched UIC's hopes of breaking the game open by retiring the next three batters in order.
The Irish would make the Flames pay for not capitalizing more in the fifth as they plated two runs of their own to knot the score, 2-2. Mallorie Lenn started the rally with an RBI double, then Alexis Madrid tied the score with an RBI fielder's choice.
Cameron Astiazaran would keep any further damage off the scoreboard, though, with a stellar defensive effort to end the inning. With the bases loaded and one out, Notre Dame's Andrea Loman lifted a fly ball into center that looked to be deep enough to bring home the go-ahead run. Astiazaran had other ideas, as she caught the fly ball then gunned down Nicole deFau at the plate.
The score would stay tied into the seventh inning, when Notre Dame's Meagan Ruthrauff led off the inning with a walk. Andria Bledsoe would follow with a single, pushing Ruthrauff to third, but Bledsoe was throw out at second trying to advance as well.
Aguilar would strike out the next batter, then appeared to be out of the inning when Liz Hartmann bounced a slow roller to emergency second baseman Michelle Miller.
Miller, who was moved to second base from left field after Meghan Gallagher was injured in a collision in the sixth and was fielding the position for the first time this season, was unable to pick the ball cleanly, allowing Hartmann to reach first safely and the go-ahead run to score.
The Flames would mount a rally in the bottom of the seventh as with two outs Amanda Rivera singled and Creese drew her second walk of the contest. Wisen ended the game, though, by getting Kristin Cumbo to bounce out to third base.
The Flames will be back in action this weekend as they hit the road for a three-game series with Wright State in Dayton, Ohio. UIC and the Raiders open the set with a doubleheader on Saturday at 12:00 p.m. (CST).
