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Cumbess, Sagermann Homer as UK Softball Defeats Arkansas 5-3
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – The
No. 17 University of Kentucky softball got a two-run home run from
junior Lauren Cumbess, who also earned the win in the circle, and a
three-run opposite field blast from freshman Nikki Sagermann en route
to a 5-3 victory over Arkansas on Sunday at Bogle Park in Fayetteville,
Ark. Freshman pitcher Kelsey Nunley threw three effective innings to
end the game and pick up her second save of the season.
Cumbess
had a great game for Kentucky (34-14, 10-8 Southeastern Conference)
throwing four strong innings to start the game, allowing two runs on
two hits with one strikeout. The two-way player made an impact in the
game before ever stepping in the circle, launching her team-leading
11th home run of the season in the top of the first inning. Cumbess
finished the game 2-for-4 with a run scored and two RBI.
The
native of Normal, Ill., has hit safely in 13 of her last 14 games and
has an extra-base hit in nine of those 14 games. For the season,
Cumbess leads the team with a .359 (56-for-156) average, including 12
doubles, 11 homers and 37 RBI. In the circle, Cumbess is 10-5 with a
3.52 ERA, striking out 77 in 99.1 innings pitched.
Sagermann
was responsible for the other three UK runs when she hit a no-doubt
laser over the wall in rightfield to give UK a 5-0 lead. The freshman
finished the game 1-for-2 with a run scored and three RBI, increasing
her batting average to .323 (32-for-99) with two doubles and five home
runs.
The Wildcats posted nine hits total in the
game with junior infielder Krystal Smith going 2-for-3, while senior
outfielder Alice O’Brien, sophomore catcher Griffin Joiner and freshmen
Christian Stokes and Sylver Samuel each had singles in the game.
Nunley
was impressive in her first relief outing of the weekend, throwing
three innings, allowing only one run on one hit with three strikeouts.
Nunley, who earned her second career save, is now 20-6 on the season
with a 2.08 ERA, striking out 143 in 185 innings pitched.
Arkansas
(30-17, 8-10 SEC) started Kimmy Beasley in the circle, throwing three
innings allowing five runs – all earned – on four hits with three
strikeouts. Senior Chelsea Cohen finished the game, throwing four
innings allowing no runs on five hits with six strikeouts. Beasley
picked up the loss, moving to 7-7 on the season with a 3.00 ERA.
The
Wildcats will return to action Wednesday against top-10 ranked
Louisville at 6 p.m. ET to start a four-game homestand. The game
against Louisville is staff appreciation night while the first 100 fans
in John Cropp Stadium on Wednesday will receive a free pack of 2013
softball trading cards. The team will also sign autographs after the
game. UK will conclude the homestand with a three-game series with
highly ranked Missouri starting Friday.
The UK/IMG
Sports Network will televise Wednesday’s game with Louisville while it
will also televise UK’s conference showdowns with highly ranked
Missouri on Friday, April 26 at 5 p.m. ET (originally scheduled for 6
p.m.) and Sunday, April 28 at 1 p.m. ET. The UK-U of L game and
Sunday’s Missouri game will be shown live throughout the entire Fox
Sports South footprint, while Friday’s Missouri game will be shown live
in the state of Kentucky and parts of North Carolina with the full Fox
Sports South footprint getting the game on a delayed basis.
Kentucky
jumped on the Razorbacks early Sunday, getting two runs in the first
inning. After a strikeout to start the game, Beasley walked Joiner to
put a runner on for Cumbess, who hammered her team-leading 11th home
run of the season to leftfield to put Kentucky up 2-0. Beasley got a
groundout and strikeout to end the rally.
The
Wildcats increased their lead to 5-0 with a rally in the fourth inning
that would chase Beasley from the circle. The inning started with an
infield single by Cumbess, who was pinch ran for by senior Kara Dill,
who moved to second on the bunt single by O’Brien. After Dill stole
third, Sagermann hammered a line drive home run over the wall in
right-centerfield to give UK a 5-0 lead. Arkansas made a pitching
change after the homer, turning to Cohen, who got out of the inning.
The
Razorbacks answered with two runs in the bottom of the fourth. The
rally started with a leadoff walk to Chole Oprzedek, who moved to
second on a groundout. After an infield single by Sierra Bronkey,
Cumbess walked Jennifer Rambo to load the bases and then walked Nicole
Schroeder to score UA’s first run. Jayme Gee followed with a sacrifice
fly to rightfield to make it 5-2 UK. Cumbess got a groundout to end the
rally.
Arkansas added a run in the bottom of the
fifth. Nunley started the inning in the circle hitting the first batter
she saw to start the rally. A one-out walk then put runners on first
and second before Nunley got a strikeout for the second out. An error
then loaded the bases before Nunley issued a walk, cutting the UK lead
to 5-3 before getting a lineout to end the inning.
Kentucky
will play host to the SEC Tournament this season for the first time in
school history. The event, which is considered one of the most
prestigious softball tournaments in the nation, will be May 8-11 in
Lexington. The championship game will be featured on ESPN2, while all
other games will be shown on ESPNU. Ticket information is available at
www.UKathletics.com/secsoftball.
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