March 24, 2001
Game 2 Box
STANFORD, Calif. - Sophomore Dana Sorensen pitched her first career perfect game on Saturday as the No. 5 Stanford softball team handed Portland State two losses at Boyd & Jill Smith Family Stadium. The Cardinal won 7-0 in game one and 5-0 in game two to improve to 30-2-1 on the year. The Vikings fall to 5-14.
In game one, Sorensen's 15 strikeouts were one short of tying her school record of 16, which she set earlier this season. She struck out the side on three occasions, including the final two innings. She walked nobody and improves to 15-1. Sorensen hasn't allowed a run in 39 innings.
The Cardinal scored one run in the first and put up a four spot in the fourth. Jessica Mendoza tripled in the bottom of the first and Kira Ching drove her in when she reached on an error. In the fourth, Stanford used four singles and a double to break the game open. Ramona Shelburne started the inning with a single and Mendoza singled her in. Sarah Beeson had an RBI double and Cassi Brangham drove in two more with a base hit for a 5-0 Stanford lead. In the sixth, Mendoza hit her team leading 11th home run of the year - a two-run shot to right.
The Cardinal pounded out 10 hits in the opening game led by Mendoza's 3-for-4 performance. She had three RBI and three runs scored while Brangham was 2-for-3 with a pair of RBI.
The second game saw Stanford jump out to an early lead again as the Cardinal scored three in the first and two in the second. Mendoza, Beeson and Ching strung together consecutive singles and later, Maureen LeCocq picked up a base hit, driving in Ching for a 3-0 lead at the end of one.
In the second inning, it was Ching and Jessica Allister with the RBI. Ching's single scored Robin Walker, who also singled, and Allister brought home Mendoza. The Cardinal had just one runner advance past second base in the remainder of the game and stranded 10 runners on base.
LeCocq started the game in the circle and pitched four innings to earn her 11th win of the year. She didn't allow a hit while striking out one and walking one to improved to 11-1. Tori Nyberg pitched two innings in relief and picked up three strikeouts while Jaime Forman-Lau came in for the final inning and sent the Vikings down in order.
Ching went 2-for-4 with three RBI while Walker and Mendoza each had two hits.
The Cardinal is next in action in its Pac-10 opener on Friday, March 30, when it takes on No. 1 UCLA at home. The first pitch is set for 2:00 p.m.