Huskers Rally for 10th Straight Win

Tulsa, Okla. - Senior Trisha Tannahill lined a bases-loaded triple down the right field line with two outs in the top of the eighth inning to break a 2-2 tie and propel the 17th-ranked Husker softball team to its 10th straight win in a dramatic, 5-2 come-from-behind victory over Notre Dame Friday at the Best Western Airport Festival.

NU (10-1) trailed 2-1 going into the seventh inning before timely hitting pulled the Huskers even. Freshman Crystal Carwile singled through the right side on a 3-2 pitch and Tannahill followed with a two-strike double down the left field line to put runners at second and third with no outs. After a ground out and a walk loaded the bases with only one out, freshman pinch hitter Brittany Pascale lifted a 3-2 fly ball to deep right field for a sacrifice fly that scored Carwile with the tying run.

The seventh-inning rally set the stage for Tannahill's heroics in the eighth. In accordance with the international tie breaker rule, junior Carmen Kier was placed on second to begin the inning. Senior Lizzy Aumua reached on an infield single and following a strikeout and a fielder's choice, Nebraska had runners on first and second with two outs. Carwile then hit a grounder to third that was misplayed by the Irish's Linda Kohan to load the bases.

That brought Tannahill to the plate and she lined a 1-0 pitch into the right field corner to clear the bases and give Nebraska its 5-2 cushion. Tannahill finished the day 2-for-4 with three RBIs.

The 5-2 lead was more than enough for junior right-hander Ashley DeBuhr, who earned the win and improved to 4-1 on the season. DeBuhr allowed two runs on seven hits and struck out eight batters.

Head Coach Rhonda Revelle was pleased with her team's effort on the day, including erasing one-run deficits to come back and win both contests.

"It was a great 'team' day," Revelle said. "There were a lot of people who had significant contributions - different people got different things done. It didn't matter if we were ahead, behind or tied, you could really feel that everyone was imagining the possibilities."

Heather Booth (3-3) was the hard-luck loser for Notre Dame (5-5). Booth took a no-hitter into the fifth inning, before junior Devin Porter hit her second late-inning solo home run of the day, taking a 2-1 pitch the opposite way to break up Booth's no-hitter and shutout and give NU a 1-0 lead.

Notre Dame answered the run and immediately tied the game and took the lead in the bottom of the inning. Gessica Hufnagle led off the inning with a single and moved to second on a sacrifice. Hufnagle then came home to tie the game on a double to the gap in left center off the bat of Stephanie Brown. A bloop single, a stolen base and an intentional walk loaded the bases with two outs for Mallorie Lenn, who singled to center field to give Notre Dame the 2-1 lead.

After Notre Dame's two-run fifth, DeBuhr retired 10 of the game's final 11 hitters to secure the victory.

Nebraska returns to action on Saturday for day two of the Best Western Airport Festival. The Huskers are scheduled to face Big 12 foe Kansas in a non-conference matchup, followed by a contest with host Tulsa. Live audio and stats for both games will be available on Huskers.com