March 12, 2001
TAMPA, Fla. - A Kira Ching double off the right centerfield wall in the bottom of the sixth was all the Cardinal needed as the No. 5 Stanford softball team defeated Texas Tech 1-0 in the championship game of the Speedline Invitational, hosted by the University of South Florida, at USF Softball Complex. The Cardinal went 7-1 on the weekend and improves to 28-2-1 on the year, while the Red Raiders fall to 15-9.
Robin Walker led off the sixth inning with a single, Jessica Mendoza reached on a fielder's choice and Sarah Beeson had a base hit to set up the game-winning hit. Ching, who was hitting in the cleanup spot, roped a double to the gap in right center, scoring Mendoza for the game's only run.
Maureen LeCocq was solid in the circle, holding Texas Tech to two hits, while striking out six and walking one. It was her second complete game shutout of the tournament as she improved to 10-1.
Mendoza was named the tournament's Most Valuable Player after hitting .462 (12-for-26) in the eight games. She hit three home runs and a double and had four RBI. She scored 12 runs and stole six bases.
Joining Mendoza on the All-Tournament Team were Beeson and pitcher Dana Sorensen. Beeson hit at a .464 clip (13-for-28) with two doubles and five RBI. She scored nine runs and had the game-winning hit in the eighth inning of the semifinal game. Sorensen went 4-0 in the circle and didn't allow a run in 28 innings. All four outings were complete game shutouts. She struck out 45 and walked just five while allowing 10 hits.
Of the four tournaments the Cardinal has played in this year, this is the third time they have been champs. Stanford was named the champion of the NFCA Leadoff Classic in Georgia and last weekend, the Cardinal won the Red Desert Classic in Utah. This weekend's tourney featured a field of 24 teams.
Stanford is idle for the next 13 days with finals scheduled for next week. The next game is slated for March 24, a home doubleheader with Portland State. The Cardinal has one more final tune-up with Texas A&M Corpus Christi on the 26th before Pac-10 play begins on March 30 with UCLA.
Score by Innings1234567R H E Texas Tech00000000 2 2 #5 Stanford000001x1 5 0 WP - Maureen LeCocq (10-1) to Jessica Allister. LP - Amanda Renfro (14-7) to Shauna Briggs. Save - None. 2B - Sarah Beeson (STAN), Kira Ching (STAN). 3B - None. HR - None. E -Rebecca Eimen (TTU) 2. LOB - Texas Tech 2, Stanford 4. Records: Texas Tech 15-9, Stanford 28-2-1.