University of Connecticut Athletics
University of Connecticut
North Texas
Clutch Hit Leads UConn to Win Over North Texas
3/13/2018 12:00:00 AM | Softball
DENTON, Texas - Freshman infielder Sam Barnett kept up her hot streak at the plate on Tuesday, recording the go-ahead RBI single in the fifth inning for the UConn softball team on its way to a 2-1 victory over North Texas at Lovelace Stadium.
The Huskies (10-15) bounced-back from a loss in the final game of the Oklahoma State Hall of Fame Classic on Sunday, as they began the second half of their spring break trip with a win over the Mean Green (9-12).
In a 1-1 game, Barnett came up with two outs in the fifth with sophomore Carli Cutler on second base. After a lengthy at-bat, the freshman smacked a single up the middle - scoring Cutler and giving the Huskies a 2-1 edge. Over the past five games, Barnett has accounted for a team-high four RBI.
Junior pitcher Jill Stockley (4-6) hurled a three-hitter in her complete-game effort, striking out five batters and walking only one. She stranded three runners on base in the contest and saw her team-best ERA dip to 1.97 this season.
Stockley retired the final nine batters of the game, while coming up clutch in the fifth inning when North Texas pushed a runner to second base on a sacrifice bunt. She recorded the final two outs, maintaining UConn's one-run lead.
Hitter #1, Hitter #2 pic.twitter.com/C8QNZBS9bW
- UConn Softball (@UConnSoftball) March 13, 2018
North Texas' sole run came on a homer by Sam Rea in the third inning, putting UConn in an early 1-0 hole. In the top of the fourth, UConn responded after leadoff hits by freshman Briana Marcelino and senior Emma Stanley resulted in an RBI groundout by sophomore Devon Casazza - her team-best 11th RBI of the season.
In the fifth, Cutler singled to start the inning and moved to second base on a sacrifice bunt by freshman Reese Guevarra. Two batters later, Barnett brought home Cutler on a single off pitcher Hope Trautwein to give UConn a permanent lead.
Guevarra went 2-for-3 at the dish, her second multi-hit game of the season. Each of the first six batters in the UConn lineup recorded a hit against the Mean Green, going a combined 7-for-20 (.350).
COMING UP
UConn travels to College Station for a weekend at No. 7/9 Texas A&M. The Huskies play the Aggies on Thursday night at 7 p.m. ET, before a doubleheader on Friday against Marist (1:15 p.m. ET) and Texas A&M (6:15 p.m. ET).
Games against the Aggies will be streamed on WatchESPN. UConn finishes the weekend against Marist on Saturday morning at 11 a.m. ET.
