Diaz strikes out 16 to breaks school record
By Matt McGuckin | Apr. 16, 2010Sophomore pitcher Terese Diaz and the softball team showed little mercy against rival St. Bonaventure in Wednesday afternoon's doubleheader, outscoring the Bonnies 19-7 to take both games on the day. In their home opener, Buffalo (13-21, 3-3 Mid-American Conference) followed a 7-0 shutout victory with a 12-7 win over St. Bonaventure (7-16) to give home fans something to smile about at Nan Harvey Field. In the first game, Diaz recorded the first no-hitter of her career. In striking out 16 batters, Diaz set a new Buffalo single game school record, breaking the previous record of 12. The Bulls' offense supported Diaz with a solid offensive performance. Buffalo scored two early runs in the bottom of the first off key RBI singles from freshman infielders HYPERLINK "http://www.ubathletics.buffalo.edu/softball/roster/ward.shtml"Alyssa Ward and HYPERLINK "http://www.ubathletics.buffalo.edu/softball/roster/griffin.shtml"Jessica Griffin. In the bottom of the third, Griffin hit a home run off opposing pitcher Sherri Thompson with freshman infielder Kristin Waldron on base to increase the Buffalo lead to 4-0. Griffin led the team at the plate, finishing the day with five hits, six RBIs and two home runs. Buffalo took full advantage of St. Bonaventure's mistakes, turning the Bonnies' errors in the third inning into runs on the scoreboard. Assistant coach Jessica Jones had much praise for how her young team came together. "St. Bonaventure definitely left some bases open for us and we took full advantage," Jones said. "The girls are starting to focus on playing UB softball as opposed to just focusing on their opponents. These wins are definitely a confident booster." Diaz took the mound for the second game as well in relief of senior pitcher Sharon Barr, who gave up three earned runs on three hits and four walks in four and one-third innings. With Buffalo sitting on a comfortable 10-1 lead, Diaz struck out four batters to preserve the win in two and two-third innings pitched. Offensively, Waldron, Griffin, Ward and junior HYPERLINK "http://www.ubathletics.buffalo.edu/softball/roster/sheehan.shtml"Alex Bejarano all hit home runs as the Bulls scored in all but the fifth inning. The Bonnies scored a majority of their runs between the fourth and sixth innings to give UB a late scare, but could not complete the comeback. "When you're opponent falls behind, they start to play like they have nothing to lose, so they just start swinging" Jones said. "We didn't worry and it wouldn't rattle our girls too much." UB will host co-MAC leaders Ball State and Miami this weekend. The weekend will begin with a doubleheader against Ball State at 1 p.m. on Friday. E-mail: sports@ubspectrum.com
