Williams, Placie Help Eagles Softball Pull Even With Malone
April 6, 2005

Complete Box Scores
Game 1         Game 2

The ditty, “Riding With Private Malone,” was a real hit among country fans a couple of years ago.

The Ashland University softball team had a wild ride with Malone on Wednesday at Brookside Park and for part of the afternoon, the Eagles experienced the kind of heartbreak that country crooners love to sing about.

Cori Helm pitched the Malone Pioneers to a 3-2 win over Ashland in the first game of a softball doubleheader at Brookside Park. Helm hurled a complete-game five-hitter to stifle the Eagles and put the end to a seven-game Malone slide.

In the second game, AU senior Nicole Placie singled to drive in Bree Beabout in the bottom of the eighth inning for a 2-1 AU win.

Ashland is 18-12 while the Pioneers are 8-9.

Helm allowed homers to Sara Mathes and Beabout in the first game, but other than that, the Eagles couldn’t do much with her deliveries. The defense behind her was solid, the Pioneers didn’t commit an error. Helm had just two strikeouts and she walked one batter.

Starter and loser Sarah Holets (3-3) gave up a single runs in the first and second innings. Andrea Diyorio doubled to drive in the first run and Sarah Sweitzer singled to drive in Helm in the second. Helm had doubled to get the uprising started.

In the fifth the visitors scored their final run. Sweitzer led off with a single and eventually came around to score on a two-bagger by Jeanelle Linder. That rally chased Holets, who left in favor of Jennifer Alderson.

Sweitzer had three hits to lead Malone. Placie was the only AU player with more one hit, she had a pair of singles. Mathes’ homer was her third of the season and that leads the team.

In the second game, AU received an outstanding mound effort from sophomore Jaime Williams. She’s 12-4 and this was her 13th complete game of the year. Unfortunately, Williams had to work overtime for the win. AU held a 1-0 lead until the top of the seventh when Ashlee Locker doubled down the left-field line with two outs to score Joslynn Friedl, who had singled. Until the seventh, Malone had just one hit off of Williams.

AU had grabbed a 1-0 lead in the first inning, stringing together three hits off of Mansfield, OH, native Heather Jones. The run came home on a double by Kelli Williams. Over the next six frames, Jones held the Eagles scoreless and allowed three hits.

In the top of the seventh, the game went to the international tie-breaker and Malone failed to score. Ashland began the bottom of the seventh with Beabout on second. A sacrifice bunt by Mathes moved her to third and Placie’s single through shortstop ended the game.

Jaime Williams finished with a three-hitter. She had 13 strikeouts and walked one.

Kelli Williams had a pair of doubles in the second game. Mathes had a single and a double.

The Eagles will play three doubleheaders at home this coming weekend. The first twinbill in that slate is on Friday (April 8) at 3 p.m., when the Eagles entertain Northwood.