March 17, 2001
Box Score
Rock Hill, S.C. - The Illinois women's softball team completed a three-game sweep of their pool at the Winthrop Invitational with a 7-1 win over Morgan State. Illinois is now 18-10 overall and 3-0 in the tournament.
Amanda Fortune struck out all nine batters she faced in the first three innings and Lindsey Tanner earned her first win of the season, as the Illini never trailed against Morgan State. Shannon Lindgren and Sherri Taylor each pitched an inning of relief.
The Illini got on the scoreboard in the second inning. An error by the Lady Bears shortstop on a Karyn Bird groundball scored Katie O'Connell to give the Illini a 1-0 lead. With two outs, Sarah Baumgartner ripped a single into right field to score Bird and extend the Illinois lead to 2-0.
Illinois added two more runs in the bottom of the third inning. After Alicia Hammel opened the inning with a walk, Erin Montgomery launched her third homerun of the season to centerfield to double the Illini lead to 4-0. Montgomery batted 2-for-3 with two RBI. Janna Sartini also finished the game batting 2-for-3.
The Illini added two more runs in the fifth inning. Erin Montgomery scored her second run of the game and Janna Sartini knocked an RBI double as the Illini went ahead 6-0.
Illinois put one more run on the board in the sixth inning. Kimberly Hubbard opened the inning with a double to left field and Lauren Gronski singled to left field to score Hubbard and give the Illini a 7-0 edge.
The Illini will begin single elimination play tomorrow in the Gold Bracket against a yet to be determined opponent. The tournament begins at 9 a.m. EST.
