Marietta survives to play another day with 4-2 victory over Capital in OAC Softball Tournament
Lady Pioneers face off with Ohio Northern at 11 a.m. for right to take on Muskingum in championship

May 4, 2007
ADA, Ohio – Facing elimination for the first time in 2007, the third-seeded Marietta College softball team defeated fourth-seeded Capital University, 4-2, to advance to day two of the Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) Tournament. The Lady Pioneers will take on top-seed and host Ohio Northern at 11 a.m. The winner of that elimination game will need to defeat second-seeded Muskingum twice to steal the OAC Tournament title.

Marietta (31-9) was able to rebound from a heartbreaking 2-1 loss Muskingum in the tournament opener, while Capital (25-17) could not regroup from a 1-0 loss to Ohio Northern earlier in the day.

The Crusaders took advantage of two Pioneers' errors to build a 2-0 lead in the top of the first frame.

Marietta came right back with a run in the first, when junior Brandy Jacob (Wellington/Keystone) led off with a single, moved to second on a Emily McComb (Gnadenhutten/Indian Valley) sacrifice bunt and scored on a double by senior Jenny Carroll (Lisbon/Beaver Local).

The Pioneers took the lead in the bottom of the second. Sophomore Christina DeMoss opened the frame with a double down the line. She moved to third on a Jessy Hutchison (Reynoldsburg) sacrifice bunt. Sophomore Erin Faulkner (Wheelersburg) then drove in DeMoss with a single through the right side. A sacrifice bunt by junior Krista Huffman (Woodsfield/Monroe Central) advanced Faulkner to second base, and Jacob knocked her in with a double to right center to give Marietta the 3-2 lead.

The Pioneers added an insurance run in the third, when sophomore Nikki Driscoll (Bellaire) singled to left field with two outs, and DeMoss followed with a RBI double to right center.

Marietta finished with nine hits and made two errors in the win. Jacob and DeMoss both went 3-for-3 with a run scored and a RBI.

Senior Kristen Quintana (Denver, Colo./Littleton) limited Capital to just six hits in the win, her 20th of the season, which ties the single-season school record that she set in 2006. Quintana (20-6) struck out seven to bring her season total to 236 and career mark to 629. Both are school records.

Erin Willieke (12-8) took the loss for the Crusaders. She last one 2/3 innings, allowing three unearned runs on five hits. Brittany Steffano worked the final 4 1/3 innings, giving up one run on four hits and striking out four.