May 1, 2008

Box Score

EAST PEORIA, Ill. - After dropping a first round game, the No. 7 Lewis Flyers responded with a convincing 10-4 win over Missouri S&T in an elimination contest, Thursday afternoon in the Great Lakes Valley Conference Championship Tournament at the Eastside Centre.

The Flyers (37-15) move on to face Indianapolis on Friday at 10 a.m. In order to advance to the championship game, Lewis will have to win three games on Friday.

In the win over the Lady Miners, the Flyers had to battle back from an early two-run hole after an error-plagued first inning. Lewis put up four runs in the third and never lost the lead. The Lady Miners scored once in the fifth to make a 4-3 game, but Lewis responded with five more in its half of the fifth to put the game out of reach.

In the Flyers' four-run third, two-out singles by sophomore Kara Harmatys and junior Kelly Dianis plus a walk to senior Carla Musillo loaded the bases, and junior Carissa Castonzo ripped a single through the right side to score two. Junior Lisa Gartland came up next and hit home two more with a single up the middle.

In the fifth, the Flyers received a two-run single from junior Courtney Lyons, a two-run double by senior Mallory Paine and a run-scoring single by Musillo. Lewis got one more run in the sixth via a bases-loaded walk.

Four Flyers produced two or more hits in the win. Harmatys and Gartland each went 3-for-4, with Gartland hitting her second and third doubles of the day in the win over S&T. Paine and Castonzo each had two hits. Paine and freshman Stephanie Harmon both doubled.

Freshman Diana Pickrum (9-1) earned the win in the circle. She went four innings, allowing one earned run. Lyons pitched the final three to earn her fourth save of the season.

The top-seeded Flyers fell 3-1, in the first round to eighth-seeded Wisconsin-Parkside, but Paine made Lewis history in the loss by belting her 10th home run of the season. Already Lewis' career home run leader, Paine now holds the program's single-season standard. She was 3-for-4 in the game.

Junior Jessica Beck also doubled for Lewis in the loss to Parkside. Lyons (19-6) suffered the loss, despite striking out seven Rangers.