Brakettes Sweep Saints as Cochran Sets New Mark

August 6, 2008 - The Stratford Brakettes finished a four-game sweep of the St. Louis Saints on Tuesday, with a 10-0 early romp and a come-from-behind 3-2 victory in the second contest. Kaitlin Cochran put herself in the record books in the first game and won the second with a seventh-inning walk-off home run.

Cochran worked a streak of 13 consecutive at-bats in which she hit safely, passing the Brakettes' previous all-time consecutive hits mark set by Kelly Kretschman in 2002. Cochran also had 19 consecutive plate appearances in which she reached base, being hit twice by pitches and walking four times in addition to the 13 hits. The hits streak was set with a first-inning single, and stopped in the fourth frame, when she grounded out to shortstop.

The Brakettes started the afternoon with two runs in the first inning off of Saints' pitcher Amanda Clack. After Cochran reached base on her record-setting hit, Jenna Lopez bunted her to second. Mandie Fishback followed and brought Cochran home with a single for a 1-0 lead. Laura Trout reached on a fielder’s choice, and stole second with two outs. Ashley Waters took advantage of the runner in scoring position, and singled Trout home for a 2-0 lead.

Cochran was hit by a pitch to lead off the third, and moved up a base on a single by Lopez. Both runners took an extra bag on a pitch in the dirt, putting Brakettes at second and third with no outs. Fishback grounded out to shortstop and scored Cochran, moving Lopez to third. Lopez then came home on Trout's grounder to short, and the Brakettes' lead was 4-0.

Stratford added three runs in the fifth, as Lopez led off with a single. Fishback reached on a bunt single, sending Lopez to second. Trout followed with a single of her own, scoring Lopez, and moving Fishback to third. Waters drove in Fishback with a sacrifice fly to right, bringing the lead to 6-0. After a walk by Jess Mouse, Jess Serio singled home Trout for a 7-0 margin.

Cochran again proved dangerous when reaching base in the leadoff spot, as she started the sixth with a walk. Lopez smashed a double, her third hit of the game, to score Cochran and put Stratford up 8-0. Fishback also singled, putting runners at the corners with no outs. Sarah Gates, who made her Brakettes' debut Monday, singled to left field to score Lopez. It was both Gates' first hit and RBI as a Brakette. Amber Radomski also added a single, which scored Fishback, bringing the scoring to a close at 10-0.

Bailey Sanders was impressive in seven scoreless innings. She struck out ten batters while scattering three hits, and walking one. Sanders improved to 11-0 for the season.

Danielle Henderson won the second game, her 99th victory in a Brakettes' uniform against just 10 losses. It was not easy, however, as the Saints twice took the lead on the Brakettes.

The Saints rode the strong starting pitching of Erin DeStefano in the late game, as she kept the Brakettes scoreless until the fifth inning. The Saints took a 1-0 lead in the fourth, when Clack led off with her second homer of the series.

Stratford tied the game in the bottom of the fifth, as Cochran started things off with a double. She drew a throw back to second base from home, as she thought about leaving for third. After the throw sailed away from the target, Cochran easily marched to third. Lopez reached on a walk, and Fishback came up with runners at first and third. Fishback launched a sac fly to score Cochran, knotting the score at 1-1.

Henderson allowed a single to Christa Gammon with one out in the sixth, bringing up the dangerous Clack. A hard-hit grounder to short was misplayed by Fishback, sending Gammon to third. Candace Curtis drove a sacrifice fly out to Lopez in deep center, as Gammon tagged from third, to give the Saints a 2-1 lead.

Mouse got that run back in a hurry in the home sixth, when she sent a 3-2 pitch over the fence in left for her third home run of 2008. The game was again tied up as the teams went to the seventh at 2-2.

Henderson worked a 1-2-3 seventh inning, leaving the Brakettes looking for the winning run with the top of the order due up.

The Brakettes would have to look no further than Cochran, who capped off her momentous day with a walk-off solo shot over the left field fence. Her teammates mobbed her at the plate, as they celebrated a 3-2 victory in their regular season finale.

The doubleheader started at 12 noon ET to accommodate the travel schedules of both squads, as they will depart Wednesday for the ASA Women's Major Fastpitch Nationals in Amherst, NY. Several hundred campers from Sterling House Community Center Youth Camps were in attendance.

The Brakettes, who finished the regular season with a 52-1 record, will play in an ASA pool-play game on Thursday night at 5:00 against the Amherst Lightening-Brooks. All Brakettes' games at the ASA Nationals will be broadcast right here at www.brakettes.com.