California Baptist University
Bethel University (Tenn.)
POOL SWEEP
5/17/2008 7:00:00 AM | Softball
DECATUR, Ala. ? It didn't matter how California Baptist got the sweep, it just matters that it completed the sweep of its pool with a 5-2 win over No. 13 Bethel in the final game of pool play at the 2008 NAIA Softball National Championships.
The Lancers (58-6) scored early and took advantage of four Pilot errors to move into bracket play undefeated after sweeping all four opponents.
CBU scored four of its five runs in the top of the first. After Sara Goforth reached on an error and Chantal Millard and Nikki Lowe reached on consecutive walks to load the bases, Erin Moore hit a sac fly to left to score Goforth. Millard then got in a rundown and after changing directions a couple of times, finally beat a throw at the plate to put the Lancers up 2-0.
California Baptist made it 4-0 on back-to-back RBI singles by Karina Slauenwhite and Allison Dennis. CBU scored their final run in the second inning on another Pilot error when Millard scored on a Shoemaker ground ball.
Dennis, who went 3-for-3 in the first game, extended her consecutive hit streak to five after ripping a pair of singles. Including the game against Shorter, Dennis reached base six straight times.
Bethel broke the shutout when freshman Katie Boocher blasted a solo shot to left field. The Pilots threatened again in the bottom of the fifth when they loaded the bases with two outs, but that's when Amy Thomas entered the contest and stuck out Sarah Rassi to end the fifth. Bethel scored its only other run when Boocher scored on a throw down to second to attempt to catch a runner, but the throw bounced off the runner into left field allowing Boocher to score from third.
Melanie Ahumada (28-2) picked up the win after going the first 4.2 innings, allowing just one run on four hits while striking out four. Thomas came on to relieve Ahumada and threw the final 2.1 innings, allowing one run on two hits.
Chantal Millard went 2-for-3 with two runs scored and a walk while Dennis went 2-for-3 with an RBI and a walk.
The win also gave CBU head coach Mike Smith his 430th win in the NAIA making him the second winningest coach all-time in the Golden State Athletic Conference.
California Baptist will now play No. 5 Trevecca Nazarene (Tenn.), Monday at 10 a.m., and will play at 3 p.m., win or lose, against either No. 4 Mobile (Ala.) or No. 2 Point Loma Nazarene. Defending national champion Oklahoma City was not able to get out of pool play after falling, 4-2, to Columbia (Mo.) in its final game of pool play.
California Baptist, St. Gregory's (Okla.), Mobile and Lubbock Christian (Texas) all won their respective pools while Dickinson State (N.D.), Point Loma Nazarene, Simon Fraser (B.C.) and Trevecca Nazarene all finished second in their pools.
The Lancers are 2-0 all-time against Trevecca Nazarene including a 3-1 win last year that ended the Trojans season.
