April 13, 2013
Box Score
DETROIT - Hannah Jenkins recorded her second career three-hit game and was one of three Ramblers to homer as Loyola University Chicago (17-13, 5-2) picked up its fifth straight Horizon League win with an 8-4 decision over host Detroit (4-29, 1-5 Horizon) today at Buysse Ballpark. The Ramblers came up with clutch hits, scoring six of their eight runs with two outs.
Loyola, which scored at least one run in each of the final three innings, took an early lead and never looked back, scoring once in the top of the second on Annie Korth's two-out double to the gap in right center, which plated Jenkins, who had reached on a walk.
The Ramblers would tack on two more runs in the third when Brie Pasquale turned on a Kat Hoffman pitch and deposited it over the centerfield fence for a two-run shot that pushed the lead to 3-0. The first baseman's blast, her seventh of the year, ties her with Becky Marx for the most home runs in a season by a Loyola freshman.
Lefthander Brittany Gardner held Detroit hitless through the first three innings before Alyssa Schaub led off the fourth with a bunt single and later scored on Sara Cupp's two-out double to cut into the Ramblers' lead. However, Loyola answered right back with three runs of its own in the top of the fifth when Jessica Balzano singled to lead off the inning for one of her two hits on the day, and one out later came around to score on Lauren Zaworski's double to left center. Following a groundout, Tarran Shaffer smashed her fourth homer of the year, a two-run bomb, to make it 6-1 in favor of Loyola.
Detroit got within three with a pair of unearned runs in the bottom of the fifth, but once again the Ramblers responded with some offense of their own, this time as Jenkins mashed her first career home run to extend the lead to 7-3.
After Detroit got within three yet again with a single run in the bottom of the inning, Loyola tacked on an insurance run on Brooke Andresen's run-producing double in the seventh.
Jenkins went 3 for 3 and scored three times, while Andresen, Balzano, and Korth tallied two hits apiece to power a Loyola offense that pounded out 14 hits off three Titans pitchers. Eight of the Ramblers' nine starters recorded at least one hit, and Andresen became the first player in school history to rack up 200 career hits when she singled up in the middle in the top of the sixth inning.
Gardner scattered seven hits and allowed only one earned run, while striking out eight, for her ninth win of the spring. The junior is now 10 wins shy of matching Kari Kiler's all-time record (51) and needs 24 strikeouts to tie Klier atop the school's strikeouts chart (535).
Loyola and Detroit wrap up the three-game series with a doubleheader tomorrow at 11 a.m. Eastern.
