Giampaolo, Ritter Team Up Again for Win Over Sooners

Saturday, May 20

Ann Arbor, Mich.

Noon

Michigan

42-13

Oklahoma

39-20-1

Oklahoma

Michigan

5/20/2006 12:00:00 AM | Softball

Box Score

ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- Senior Jennie Ritter (Dexter, Mich./Dexter) shut out the Oklahoma Sooners through nine innings, allowing three hits and striking out 15, until sophomore Alessandra Giampaolo (Pasadena, Calif./Polytechnic) could connect on her second game-winning hit of the NCAA postseason to give the University of Michigan softball team a 1-0 win Saturday afternoon (May 20) at Alumni Field.

Ritter allowed a pair of infield hits in regulation and a single through the right side in the ninth but otherwise kept the Sooners in check, extending her postseason shutout streak to 42.0 innings, stretching back to the 2005 Women's College World Series.

Giampaolo's hit, an RBI double to centerfield, broke a scoreless tie and gave Giampaolo her second game-winning drive of the NCAA postseason, following a solo home run against Youngstown State on Friday. Giampaolo's drive scored junior Rebekah Milian (Grand Blanc, Mich./Grand Blanc) from second. Milian finished the day 2-for-4 with a double in the first inning.

Milian led off for the Maize and Blue in the bottom of the ninth with a single to the shortstop and senior Becky Marx (St. Joseph, Mich./St. Joseph) laid down a sacrifice bunt to advance her to second. With one out, Oklahoma intentionally walked sophomore Samantha Findlay (Lockport, Ill./Lockport) to bring up Giampaolo. With a 2-2 count, Giampaolo laced a shot to the fence in left-center to score Milian for a 1-0 Michigan win, putting the Wolverines one win away from the regional crown.

In the first inning, the Wolverine defense came out strong with Ritter strutting her stuff from the first pitch of the game. Michigan's bats got moving with a one-out Milian double to shallow leftfield and Findlay followed with a single but got caught stealing second to end the inning and keep the game scoreless.

U-M had a scare in the top of the third as Oklahoma's Susan Ogden reached base on an error and Sooner Norrelle Dickson singled to the shortstop, but the Wolverines stayed calm behind Ritter and ended the top of the third frame unscathed.

In the fourth inning senior Tiffany Haas (North Tustin, Calif./Foothill) and Giampaolo squeezed out a hit apiece, and in the fifth frame junior Tiffany Worthy (Yorba Linda, Calif./Lutheran) and freshman Teddi Ewing (Olathe, Kan./Olathe East), who collected her first postseason hit, struck for the Maize and Blue, but U-M could not convert and the game remained deadlocked heading into the sixth.

The top of the ninth frame featured Ritter striking out her 14th batter but Sooner centerfielder Kristin Vesely singled through the right side and designated player Samantha Ricketts reached on a fielder's choice. With two outs, Ritter continued her feisty pitching to add her 15th strikeout of the ballgame and hold off the Sooners yet again.

Michigan will take on the winner of Game 5 of the NCAA Region 9 Championship Sunday (May 21) at 1 p.m. A second game, if necessary, would be played at 3:30 p.m.

Contact: Richard Retyi (734) 763-4423