Illinois softball falls to No. 10 Arizona, defeats Hofstra
February 13, 2009
Day two of the USF Wilson Tournament pitted the Fighting Illini (5-3) against a team they lost to the day before and one of the nation’s top squads in No. 10 Arizona.
The Illini started off the day by getting their revenge against Hofstra for Friday’s 4-1 loss.
Junior Ashley Wright picked up the victory against the Pride on Saturday, tossing five and a third innings, allowing just one run.
Illinois scored first on an RBI double by junior right fielder Hope Howell. Freshman third baseman Kelley Wedel got into the action in the second with an RBI single and the Illini held on for the 2-1 victory.
Despite aggressive offense and strong pitching much of the game, the Illini were unable to win game two of the day, falling 7-4 to No. 10 Arizona.
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The Fighting Illini drew first blood, scoring on a pair of errors by the Wildcats and an RBI single by Wedel.
Freshman pitcher Monica Perry held Arizona hitless until the fourth when they came back to tie the game with a three-run inning. The Illini retook the lead in the bottom of the inning when Wedel scored from third on a wild pitch.
But the Wildcats homered twice in the bottom of the sixth and tacked on a pair of insurance runs in the seventh, holding on for the 7-4 win.
Illinois wraps up the USF Wilson Tournament against Marshall on Sunday.