April 24, 2010
Final Stats
SALT LAKE CITY - The UNLV Rebels (27-17 overall, 4-2 Mountain West) blanked the Utah Utes (21-22, 3-4 MWC) by a 4-0 margin Saturday afternoon in the first game of a doubleheader at Ute Field in Salt Lake City. UNLV scored all four runs early in the contest and rode the left arm of Traci Odegard (6-8) for the pitching staff's fifth shutout of the year. The win snaps the Rebels three-game losing streak.
The Rebels went up 2-0 off a two-run double to left field fence by Kendall Fearn that scored Marissa Nichols and Jaci Hull. Nichols led off the game being hit by a pitch from Ashley Smuda (18-11). Hull then cranked a double to center to push Nichols into scoring position for Fearn's hit.
UNLV added two insurance tallies in the second with help from three hits and a Utah error. Laura Briones started the frame off with a walk before taking second on a single by Paige Emerson. Laura King then entered the game as a pinch-runner for Briones and came around on a ball put in play by Nichols that was mishandled by Utah's second baseman. Emerson took third on the errant play and then scored on an RBI-single to left by Tara Bendt.
Odegard allowed four hits in the game with the first two of the infield variety, while the others occurred in the late innings and went through the left side. Only two balls reached the outfield going down as fly outs. She added four strikeouts and two walks to her statistics.
In all, the teams left 19 runners stranded in the game with UNLV owning 10. Seven of the Rebel runners left behind were in scoring position. Utah only had three reach either second or third base.
Utah had a runner on third in the third with one out, but its hitters hit consecutive liners to Odegard to end the threat. They managed to load the bases in the seventh off of two hit batters and a single with one out, but watched as the hurler got back-t-back outs off a pop up and a groundout.
Smuda was stuck with the loss in 2.1 innings of work. She was touched for four runs on five hits. She walked two and struck out one.
Joni Cook relived Smuda in the third and threw the final 4.2 innings for Utah. Cook allowed three hits and two walks.
UNLV will wrap up its doubleheader with Utah at 2:30 pm MT (1:30 pm PT).
