Lopez, Owls Take Two on Day One of FAU Classic

Friday, February 16

Boca Raton, Fla.

6:00 PM

Florida Atlantic

St. John's

2/17/2007 1:11:00 PM | Softball

Feb. 17, 2007

Box Score

BOCA RATON, FL - Jenna Lopez threw out a runner at the plate in the top of the 10th inning and Blair Bodenmiller drove in the game-winning run in the bottom half of the inning as the Florida Atlantic University softball team picked up a 3-2 win over St. John's on Friday during day one of the FAU Classic at FAU Softball Stadium.

The Owls had just three hits and were trailing 1-0 heading into the bottom of the seventh, but three hits yielded a run after Lopez was hit by the pitch to drive in a run and tie the game at 1. The Owls would leave the bases loaded in the inning.

The teams traded runs in the eighth, but St. John's had a huge threat brewing in the 9th before Lopez's big play turned them away. An error leading off the inning put runners on the corners and a passed ball put runners on second and third with no outs. After starting pitcher Meghan Doonan forced a pop up off the bat of Red Storm first baseman Spring Montgomery, it looked like St. John's would take the lead on a sacrifice fly when Roxann Struble drove a ball out to center field. Lopez circled behind the fly ball and threw a perfect strike to Charlotte Baird covering home, who tagged out Bionka King at the plate.

The Owls turned St. John's aside in the 10th, and after a bunt single by Mandie Fishback put runners on the corners, Bodenmiller drove in Lopez for the 3-2 win.

Doonan (2-0) picked up her second win of the season, going 10 innings while giving up eight hits, one earned run, walked two and struck out eight.

In the night cap, the Owls' offense carried the weight, aided by seven walks issued by Blackbird pitching.

Becky Brandies hit her first home run of the season driving in the first two runs of the game in the third before a pair of two-out errors yielded another run for a 3-0 lead after three. Long Island struck back for two of their own in the bottom half of the inning on a two-run two-out double by Raylene Asman, but FAU would score one in the fourth and two in the fifth for a 7-2 lead and wouldn't look back.

The big blow was a bases-loaded double to left-center off the bat of Vanessa Suarez, who was 3-for-4 with a pair of infield singles in the ball game. Kathryn Stauffer got the win and improved to 2-0 by throwing five innings and giving up two runs on four hits while walking three and striking out three.

Tomorrow, FAU (5-2) will face East Carolina at 6 p.m., before facing No. 11 Michigan at 8 p.m. in the final game of round robin play. Championship action is slated for Sunday.