Feb. 19, 2006
LAS CRUCES, N.M. - Riding the arm of senior righthander Courtney Salmon (Auburn, Wash.) the Miami University softball team blanked New Mexico State, 2-0, in the final game of the Troy Cox Invitational Sunday afternoon. Salmon tossed a five-hit, complete-game shutout as the RedHawks finished the tournament with a 4-1 mark, moving their overall record to 6-3, their best nine-game start since the 2000 season.
With swirling winds whipping through the New Mexico State Softball Complex, three different RedHawks had multi-hit games, including junior Leslie Macedo who finished 2-for-3. Macedo had Miami's only RBI in the game and finished the tournament with a .588 batting average (10-for-17) and 11 RBIs.
Miami plated the game's first run in the top of the first as a two-out RBI single from Macedo staked the RedHawks to a 1-0 lead. Speedy freshman slapper Ashley Gartland (Tempe, Ariz.) led off the inning by chopping an infield single off the plate, and, after two quick outs, she swiped second base. Macedo then fell behind in the count, 1-2, to preseason all-WAC pick Sarah Seagraves before lining a single to centerfield, scoring Gartland from second.
The game settled into a pitching duel after the RedHawks' first-inning run, with both teams struggling to find their offense versus the two staff aces. Neither team had a runner reach third base until the fourth inning when the Aggies put runners at second and third in the bottom of the fourth.
After allowing the first two batters of the game to reach base, Salmon retired 10 of the next 12 batters she faced. In the bottom of the fourth, Salmon struck out the inning's first batter before back-to-back singles and a passed ball put runners at second and third. Salmon then wriggled out of the jam, inducing a flyout to rightfield and a lineout to third base to end the threat. Macedo made a diving play at third on the sinking line drive for the final out of the inning, saving the potential tying run from scoring.
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Miami and New Mexico State both had runners in scoring position in the fifth but failed to push across a run. The RedHawks had runners at the corners with two out, but the Aggies cut down a potential double steal at home plate with a 1-4-3 putout. In the bottom half of the inning, Salmon induced back-to-back groundouts with runners at second and third, protecting Miami's 1-0 lead.
The RedHawks went up 2-0 in the top of the sixth as two Aggie errors helped Miami extend its lead. After leading off the inning with a single and advancing to second on a fielding error, Macedo went to third on a wild pitch and scampered home after an errant throw from the catcher skipped into the outfield.
Salmon (3-2) retired the next six batters in order in the sixth and seventh inning to put the finishing touches on her second complete-game shutout of the season. In seven innings, Salmon struck out seven and walked two.
Gartland extended her hitting streak to seven games with her 2-for-4 finish, moving her season batting average to .480 (12-for-25). Off to a blazing start in her first collegiate season, Gartland has hit safely in all seven games she has started and finished the weekend tournament 10-for-18 (.555 batting average) with four multi-hit games.
The RedHawks, who tied New Mexico State and Texas State for the best record in the Troy Cox Invitational, head to Chattanooga, Tenn. next weekend for the Panera Classic (Feb. 24-26).
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