The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
University of Texas
.png&width=60&height=60&type=webp)
Kansas
Barnhill and Craig lift No. 24 Softball to shutout Kansas, 5-0
04.18.2009 | Softball
April 18, 2009
AUSTIN, Texas -- Texas sophomore righthander Brittany Barnhill fired her second complete game shutout of the week as the 24th-ranked Longhorns downed, Kansas, 5-0, Saturday night. The Longhorns' win improved UT to 33-14 on the year and 9-4 in the Big 12, while the Jayhawks dropped to 16-24 and 4-7 in league action.
Barnhill (21-9) notched the victory after tossing 7.0 innings, scattering two hits, walking three and fanning seven. The Longhorns hurler threw 4.2 innings of no-hit softball before surrendering her first hit. Kansas starter Sarah Vertelka was saddled with the loss after lasting just 0.2 innings and giving up two runs on one hit and four walks.
The Horns used four walks and one hit in the first to push two runs across. Senior first baseman Desiree Williams led off the frame with a walk, stole her UT career record-tying 61st base and advanced to third on a sacrifice bunt. An illegal pitch by Vertelka allowed Williams to score and an RBI single by freshman third baseman Nadia Taylor plated freshman shortstop Lexy Bennett who reached on a free pass.
Texas pushed the tally to 3-0 in the third when sophomore catcher Amy Hooks drew a two-out walk and came around to score on an RBI single to left field by Taylor.
The Longhorns put two more runs on the board in the sixth when freshman rightfielder Courtney Craig and Bennett connected for back-to-back homers to push the UT edge to 5-0.
Craig highlighted the UT offense on the night with a 3-for-3 hitting effort, while Taylor registered two hits and two RBI.
Texas returns to action on Sunday, April 19 when it finishes its two-game set with Kansas. First pitch is set for Noon Central.
POSTGAME NOTES
- Desiree Williams' stolen base in the first inning was the 61st of her career, tying her for No. 1 all-time in the UT career stolen base record book. Williams shares the top spot with Tina Boutelle and Lindsay Gardner.
- With its ninth Big 12 Conference win of the year, Texas equaled its conference win total from 2008.
POSTGAME QUOTES
HEAD COACH Connie Clark
On the shutout win today: I thought [Brittany] Barnhill and [Amy] Hooks did a nice job of making adjustments throughout the game. To be able to throw off-speed pitches on full counts can be really devastating for the other team's offense. I thought Barnhill had great command of that today. Even with a little bit of a tight strike zone, I thought she made some really good adjustments.
On Courtney Craig's performance: She went three-for-three today on three different pitches, so that was the exciting part. I think Kansas is probably scratching their heads a little bit thinking about what they are going to throw at her tomorrow. She has the ability to do that. She plays like an upperclassman already, because she makes such quick adjustments on the fly during an at bat. That's something that typically takes a year or two for them to do, and that's something she does exceptionally well.
SOPHOMORE P Brittany Barnhill
On her pitching performance today: I think I used a little bit of everything today. I think Amy [Hooks] did a really great job of calling the pitches. We were just going with what was working and we tried to keep them off balance to keep them guessing at the plate.
On Amy Hooks' pitch calling: She didn't call pitches last year, but she did a little bit at the beginning of this year. Now, Coach Clark really has faith in her and she does a really great job. I think it's easier for a catcher to call pitches, because she can see where the batter is standing and she has a few notes that she keeps with her. She has a good idea of how to attack each batter.
On rebounding from the losses last week: I think that losses happen. We fought hard in every ball game, but they just didn't go our way. We just have to keep playing hard no matter what and no matter who we're playing.
On her off-speed pitches today: It was definitely working pretty well. We've been working on that a lot in practice, so I'm glad that we were able to use it effectively tonight. Amy did a great job of using them even in a full-count situation.
FRESHMAN RF Courtney Craig
On moving up to the number two spot in the lineup: Nothing has really changed much with me moving up to that spot. My bunting game has to be more reliable at that position, but there isn't more pressure for me. It's good for me to be able to work on my bunting game more.
On her home run: The pitcher threw two strikes on the inside in that at-bat. On my first at bat, she threw a change-up, and in my second at-bat, she threw to the outside, so I knew she had to switch it up again a little bit. I just waited on the ball to get the plate and swung early to get that home run.
