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Softball

SOFTBALL

10 returning starters bolster Spartans as tourney kicks off season

By Becky Johns For The State News As the MSU softball team prepares for a new season, players and coaches are keeping one objective in mind: "Play the game, not the jersey." MSU head coach Jacquie Joseph said the philosophy of focusing on its own game, not the opponent's, is what keeps the players working toward a common goal.

SOFTBALL

Team ends Big Ten season

Coming off a sweep of a doubleheader against IPFW on Wednesday, the MSU softball team will head into the weekend with four big games to close out the Big Ten portion of its schedule, with two games against No.

SOFTBALL

WEB ONLY: Spartans complete doubleheader sweep

The MSU softball team recorded 4-0 and 5-0 victories at Oakland on Tuesday, its first doubleheader sweep against the same opponent since the 2002 season. Sophomore Rachel Turney and Freshman Lesley Noel each pitched the complete-game shutouts in the doubleheader sweep. Turney's shutout was the second time in her last three starts that she has blanked an opponent.

SOFTBALL

Team drops 2nd game in split, 3-1

Once again, the offense ran dry for the MSU softball team. After partaking in the fifth-longest game in MSU softball history, a 2-1, 13-inning win in the first game of the doubleheader, the Spartans left seven runners on base in the second game as they fell to Penn State, 3-1, Sunday afternoon at Old College Field. "That first game was really a doubleheader in itself," MSU head coach Jacquie Joseph said.

SOFTBALL

MSU takes on winless Valparaiso

The MSU softball team has had time to rest and prepare for its away game against Valparaiso today, after its first home games were canceled last weekend. The Spartans were originally scheduled to play Central Michigan last Thursday and Loyola-Chicago on Saturday.

SOFTBALL

'U' ends season in regionals with loss to Georgia

The MSU softball team ended its season at the NCAA Regional in Athens, Ga., with a 9-1 loss to host school, Georgia. The Spartans managed only one run and six hits for the entire game and were unable to muster up any offense. "I think it's putting together hits and we didn't do that," senior third baseman Brittney Green said.

SOFTBALL

MSU to face Texas A&M at Regionals

A broad smile formed on Jessica Beech's face as she couldn't contain her excitement after learning her team's destination for the NCAA Tournament. The senior pitcher clapped loudly with her teammates as cheers erupted throughout the Berkowitz Basketball Complex.

SOFTBALL

Beech works through delays, sets records

The frustration was building as the rain delay continued and Jessica Beech began walking around the Oosterbaan Fieldhouse, at the University of Michigan, to kill time before game one of the Big Ten tournament. For Beech, a senior pitcher, this was to be her last Big Ten tournament and maybe her last game if the Spartans couldn't beat the top seed U-M on its home field.

SOFTBALL

'U' outlasts Eastern in 3-0 win

Jessica Beech pitched four perfect innings on the mound and chalked up three strikeouts as the MSU softball team defeated Eastern Michigan, 5-1, on Wednesday. Sophomore catcher Elizabeth Peterson knocked in two runs for the Spartans in this nonconference game.

SOFTBALL

Spartans continue to sputter

Down by five at the top of the seventh inning Sunday, with one out and the bases loaded, the MSU softball team was hoping to pull off an upset against Indiana. Up to bat was senior third base Brittney Green, wanting to be the hero again after hitting a walk-off home run in the bottom of the 10th inning in the first game of the afternoon's doubleheader. Green faced Megan Roark, the same Purdue pitcher in the second game as she did in game one, when she hit her fifth home run on the year. But this time, Roark struck out Green and then sophomore catcher Elizabeth Peterson to hang on for an 8-3 Hoosiers win. "We continually have inconsistencies in our performances," MSU head coach Jacquie Joseph said.

SOFTBALL

Hard hitting

Sporting dreadlocks and a killer swing, senior first base Nat Furrow is carrying the MSU softball team to offensive greatness. Furrow leads the team and Big Ten with a .447 batting average, in addition to owning the most hits (63) and doubles (16). "I think as you get older, if you keep working, you become a better player," she said.

SOFTBALL

Spartans missing pitching in losses

Poor pitching continues to plague the MSU softball team, which dropped both games in a doubleheader against Penn State Sunday. The Spartans (24-19 overall, 4-8 Big Ten) lost, 6-1 and 11-6, to the Nittany Lions (18-25, 4-6) at Nittany Lion Field in University Park, Pa.