BOCA RATON, Fla. – Freshman
Kaitlyn Cunningham broke up a perfect game with a bunt double, in the fourth, and senior
Kara Lokeinsky tossed three shutout innings in Florida Atlantic University's 6-0 loss to USF on Saturday.
The Owls (2-9) saw host USF (2-3) score two runs in both the first and second as well as one in the third and fourth before Lokeinsky came in for relief. Lokeinsky held the Bulls' bats quiet through the final three frames. In total, the hurler faced 10 batters without surrendering a hit, facing one more than minimum due to a fielding error.
Offensively, the Owls struggled with 17 strikeouts in the game. Cunningham's dropped a leadoff bunt in the top of the fourth and used her speed to stretch it into a double with no one covering second, which was officially scored as a double. One batter later,
Sara Berthiaume singled and later advanced by taking advantage of a strikeout-first and third situation. The duo would be stranded ending the threat. Third baseman
Myah Murray would record FAU's final hit with a one-out single to short in the fifth.
"We didn't pitch a bad game, but made too many mistakes," said
Joan Joyce, FAU's head coach. "We will need to be smarter at the plate tomorrow and just do a better job."
- Cunningham, Berthiaume and Murray were each 1-for-3
- It was Cunningham's second double of her young career and she is third on the squad with a .406 slugging percentage
- Starting pitcher Lynn Gardner moved to 2-3 on the season. The lefty struck out four Bulls in three innings of work. She has struck out a season-high four in each of her last three outings
FAU will return to the field Sunday at 3 p.m. for a scheduled double header with USF and will return home for the Parents' Weekend Tournament, scheduled for Thursday, March 4th through Monday, March 8th. Sunday's games versus USF will air on ESPN+. Fans also can follow the team on social media @fausoftball.