Hoosiers serve up grand slam during victory

The weather in Carbondale, Ill., may have been too cold to play in, but the Hoosiers’ offense heated up at just the right time. \nSophomore infielder Stephanie Pellerito hit a grand slam in the sixth inning, as the Hoosiers (3-4) rallied for a 6-2 win Sunday against Ball State, splitting two games at the Kay Brechtelsbaur Southern Classic. The Hoosiers were defeated by Western Illinois by the same score Saturday. \nDown 2-1 at the bottom of the sixth, junior outfielder Julia Hamilton got the rally going with a leadoff triple. After the Cardinals intentionally walked junior catcher Tory Yamaguchi, sophomore infielder Sarah Padove dropped a single into shallow right field to plate Hamilton, tying the game at two. IU coach Stacey Phillips decided to pinch run freshman outfielder Kelli Ritchison for Yamaguchi, and Ritchison made the most of it by beating a throw to third on a fielder’s choice, setting the scene for Pellerito’s two-out clutch hit.\nPellerito stepped up to the plate in the situation every softball player dreams of as a kid: bases loaded, two outs and the ballgame tied. \n“I was thinking base hit, base hit, which would tie the game,” Pellerito said. “Coach tells us the best pitch to hit is the first hit. It’s a great feeling. I was smiling the whole time – I’m still smiling.” \nThe Hoosiers also received some help from sophomore pitcher Monica Wright, who picked up the win in relief of junior Jennifer Moore. \nMoore started the game but only lasted one-third of the first inning, as she allowed two runs on two walks. Wright shut down the Cardinals, allowing only five hits and two walks in almost seven innings. \n“Monica is such a hard worker,” Phillips said. “She puts a lot on her shoulders and takes the reigns a bit. When we brought Monica in, she shut down the offense and albeit gave up a couple walks, we were able to control things a little bit.” \nThe come-from-behind victory was a big boost for a team that has struggled out of the gate. \n“That (the win) builds our confidence because you come back from losing so we battled all the way back to the end of the game,” Pellerito said. “Anything can happen.” \nIt was a tale of runs in both games for the Hoosiers, although they were on the short end of the stick in the Western Illinois game. \nWith the score tied at two in the top of the seventh, Western Illinois took full advantage of three hits and an IU error. \nThe Westerwinds loaded the bases on a walk and a pair of hits. After forcing a grounder to short, Yamaguchi failed to hold onto sophomore Emily Bergeson’s throw home, allowing seniors Amy Douglas and Jennifer Garcia to score. One out later, freshman Julie Depolo singled up the middle, scoring senior Nicole Green and freshman Erin Schlotfeldt to propel Western Illinois to the 6-2 victory. \n“We got down a little bit, and early on when we weren’t getting to them the way we thought we should be, we sat on our heels and let them win it for us,” Phillips said. “No team is going to roll over. Western Illinois had a lot of fight in them. They tried to keep us off our game.”\nThe Hoosiers struggled on offense the entire game, getting only one hit in seven innings compared to eight hits from Western Illinois. The Hoosiers also failed to take advantage of three errors committed by the Westerwinds. \n“When a team walks batters, you have to make them pay for it,” Phillips said. “We didn’t make them pay. We have to have a sense of urgency. When someone gives us a present we want to take it.” \nThe Hoosiers were supposed to play tournament host Southern Illinois, but the game was canceled due to cold weather in the area.