WASHINGTON D.C. - In a pivotal BIG EAST match, the University of South Florida softball team (23-28 overall, 8-12 BIG EAST) defeated the Georgetown Hoyas (17-32, 6-14), 4-2 in Game 1 of Saturday's doubleheader. With the win the Bulls kept their BIG EAST tournament hopes alive while knock out the Hoyas from the running.
Lindsey Richardson (12-7) earned her 12th win of the year as the freshman tossed her seventh complete game. The Estero, Fla., native scattered eight hits, gave up two runs, just one earned, and limited the Hoyas to one walk.
"It's really important to try and go the full seven innings," said Richardson. "And since we are down a pitcher with Brittany and her foot injury, the three of us have to throw as much as we can because we don't know what's going to happen, especially with having three games this weekend."
Although the Hoyas outhit the Bulls 8-6, Georgetown's Mackensey Carter (8-17) suffered her 17th loss of the season. Carter allowed four runs, only one earned, on six Bulls hits.
The Bulls were quick to get on base as sophomore Janine Richardson earned a leadoff walk in the first inning. With two outs, senior Alison Savarese doubled to right field, driving in Richardson for the Bulls first run of the game. It marked Savarese's 22nd extra base hit of the year.
The Bulls tacked on two more runs in the third to extend their lead, 3-0. Richardson reached base for the second straight time, this time on a bunt single. Senior Tara Toscano reached on a single to put runners on first and second.
After Savarese moved Richardson up a base on a long fly ball to right and Toscano stole second, senior JoJo Medina hit a hard grounder that Georgetown second baseman Kelsie Hanson could not handle, allowing both runners to touch home.
Richardson held the shutout until the fifth when Carter hit her fourth homer of the year to cut the Bulls lead to 3-2. Hanson, who reached on an error, was on base when Carter hit the dinger.
"If you take a look at Lindsey's game, she only made one bad pitch," said Eriksen. "Eliminating the walks is big but then she got out of some crucial jams for us. She only threw 101 pitches which helps out going into Game 3 tomorrow."
Janine Richardson made a spectacular diving catch in left center with runners on first and second to make the final out of the fifth and keep the Bulls lead at 3-2.
"I saw it and I knew I had to catch it," said Richardson. "We have been working on nothing falling in the outfield so if was in the air, we had to catch it. Once it was hit I didn't know if I would have it but knew I was going to dive and try for it anyway."
"That was a season saving catch," said Eriksen. "Janine made one of the most crucial catches I have ever seen in a crucial time in a crucial part of the season."
USF added an insurance run in the sixth as senior Cat Olnick laid down a suicide squeeze with Becky Frye on third to give the Bulls a 4-2 lead.
Olnick led the Bulls at the plate, going 2-for-2 for her sixth multi-hit performance of the season.
The Bulls are now three wins shy of their 1,000th win in program history.
