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Softball
Larsen's Walk-Off Homer Caps Dramatic Comeback In 5-4 UNI Win
April 9, 2007
Game 1 Box Score | Game 2 Box Score
CEDAR FALLS, Iowa -- Jen Larsen provided the final dramatic play to wrap up what was a dramatic comeback by the University of Northern Iowa softball team Monday, hitting a two-run, walk-off home run to cap a five-run seventh inning and give the Panthers a 5-4 win over North Dakota State. With two outs and UNI trailing by a run in the final inning, Larsen ( NDSU won the opening game of the twinbill, which served as UNI's home-opener at
After the Bison added an insurance run in the top of the sixth inning, UNI found itself trailing 4-0 heading into the final frame. That's when the Panther bats came alive. Kelly Papesh ( With the Panthers still down by three runs, Lepley delivered a clutch, two-out double to plate Shalla and Mandy Kumamoto (Torrance, Calif./West), who had singled two batters earlier. The two-RBI hit brought UNI within a single run and set up Larsen's heroic blast, her second homer of the day and eighth of the season. UNI had mustered just two hits heading into the seventh, as NDSU pitcher Bekki Rasmussen was strong in the circle, racking up nine strikeouts. The Bison, meanwhile, put up three runs in the third inning with three base hits and a pair of Panther errors. They added their fourth tally in the sixth on an RBI double by Lynnae Foshag, but the cushion was not enough to withstand UNI's seventh-inning rally. The comeback made a winner of Lepley, who saw her season record improve to 7-8 after surrendering just three earned runs and scattering six hits in a complete-game effort. Rasmussen fell to 6-5 on the year by taking the loss for the Bison. GAME ONE A fast start allowed Three straight hits opened the door for NDSU in the first inning, with Kelly Cantrell knocking an RBI single and then scoring on a squeeze play. Starter Allison Bakke made sure the Panthers had no answer, striking out the side in both the first and second frames by retiring the first six batters she faced on strikes. She racked up 11 Ks in the game. Larsen provided UNI's first run -- and the Panthers' first hit -- with a solo homer to left in the fourth inning, and Papesh followed suit by leading off the fifth inning with her fifth home run of the season. The Bison had already tacked on single runs in the third and top of the fifth, however, to give themselves a comfortable cushion. Bakke, who took the win and improved to 14-10 on the year, combined with Rasmussen to allow the Panthers just nine hits over the course of two games. The duo also racked up a combined 20 strikeouts. Larsen was saddled with the loss for UNI and saw her record dip to 8-10 despite pitching well after At the plate, Larsen finished the day with three runs batted in and was one of seven UNI players to record at least one hit. The Panthers return to the field this weekend, hosting NOTES Jen Larsen's seventh-inning home run in the nightcap was the Panthers' second walk-off homer of the season and third game-winning longball. Stefaney Shalla provided the others, hitting a three-run walk-off shot to give UNI a 4-3 win over Larsen's eight home runs are the most by a Panther in a season since Rachael Rogers had nine homers in 2004. UNI has only had four double-digit home run seasons by a single player in its history. Angela Higgins was the last to tally a double-digit total, when she hit a school-record 14 longballs in 2003. With Jen Larsen and Kelly Papesh each delivering a home run in Monday's opening game, UNI has recorded five multi-homer games this season. As a team, the Panthers have racked up 25 longballs in 35 games so far this season. UNI hit 17 homers in 51 games last year. |
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