YSU softball team is swept

By John Bassetti

The UIC women made adjustments at the plate.

CANFIELD — The University of Illinois-Chicago’s strong seventh inning in the first game carried over into the second as the Flames punched out a doubleheader victory over Youngstown State University’s softball team Saturday at McCune Park.

The Penguins (5-17, 2-5 Horizon) faced some good pitching against Sarah Clynes’ four-hitter in a 7-2 loss and against Whitney Orellana’s six-hitter in a 5-2 loss.

“We should have won the first game, 2-1,” YSU coach Christy Cameron said, pointing to a passed ball in the third inning that let Brittany Dixon score for UIC’s first run. Later, Brooke Frydendall’s bunt preceding an error in left field allowed the go-ahead run to score.

“If we get the out on the bunt play and [catch] the fly ball to left, we come out ahead, 2-1,” Cameron said. “But against good pitching, which is typically going to beat good hitting.

“Give them credit in the first game when we didn’t make the plays and they capitalized on our mistakes. We just have to do the little things on a consistent basis and we’ll be fine.”

Of the second game against Orellana, Cameron said, “She mixed the ball and we didn’t help ourselves by getting down early, which makes it kind of hard to climb out of. Mentally, it takes you a little out of your game plan.”

Jamie Fornal had a double and single in the first game, as did UIC’s Dixon.

Of her seven-strikeout four-hitter, Clynes (9-11) said: “I just pitched how I usually do. I definitely thought the momentum carried over for Whitney to do what she did.”

Danielle Chase (3-7) took the loss in the opener.

Chase recalled Stephanie Chavez’ game-tying home run in the fifth inning.

“On a 1-1 count, it was low and off the plate and she took advantage of it,” Chase said of the knuckleball to the leadoff hitter that cleared the left-center field fence.

Chase took responsibility for the seventh inning’s damaging start.

“We were playing well all-around, and hitting well and playing pretty solid defense. Then they capitalized on the leadoff hit to right field [by Melissa Marinacci]. That was on my shoulders.”

Flames’ co-head coach, Tom Gray, said that Chase kept his hitters off balance early, but then the UIC women made adjustments at the plate.

“I think that was the difference in the game,” said Gray, a co-coach with Sarah O’Malley Fisher for a seventh season.

“Youngstown has a really solid 3-6 hitters,” Gray said. “Not that their other hitters are chopped liver, but when you look at [McKenzie] Bedra, Fornal and [Autumn] Grove, they are pretty tough, but our kids battled back and did a good job of shutting them down later in the game.”

Mallory Studzinski, pinch-hitting for Carly DeMarco, knocked in Marinacci for a 3-2 lead in the top of the seventh.

“We had a short-game kid [DeMarco] coming to the plate, but we wanted to put it out of the infield and get us a line drive somewhere. That’s why Mallory [Studzinski] came in,” Gray said.

About Clynes, Gray said, “I didn’t think she had her best stuff at first, but she really quickly got back to pitching her game from the second inning on.”

In the second game, the Flames (15-21, 6-1) jumped out to a 3-0 lead.

Alicia Abbott had two doubles and a single for UIC, which outhit the Penguins, 11-6.

Fornal had her second home run of the season, a blast to right-center.

YSU and UIC finish their three-game series today at 1 p.m.

bassetti@vindy.com