Box Score
TUCSON- Lindsey Collins' 13th home run of the season with one out in the
bottom of the eighth gave Arizona a 3-2 victory over top-ranked Washington
before a season-high crowd of 2,329 at Rita Hillenbrand Stadium.
UA pitcher Jenny Finch (23-2) held the Huskies to four hits and struck out
eight, plus hit a home run - one of three the Cats used to come back from a
2-0 deficit and beat the Huskies for the first time in five tries this year.
Arizona shortstop Allison Andrade led off the bottom of the seventh with
her eighth home run of the year to tie the game at 2.
Arizona has lost only three games against the rest of its schedule but had
been unable to beat the league-leading Huskies in four previous tries --
once in Tucson at the beginning of the year, once at a tournament in
Fullerton, Calif., and twice at Seattle last month. Arizona improved to
48-7 overall and 11-4 in Pac-10 play. Washington dropped to 52-6 and 12-3.
Washington reliever Jennifer Spediacci (28-3) took the loss after entering
the game with the Huskies leading 2-0.
Washington jumped to a quick 2-0 lead on Jenny Topping's 21st home run of
the year, following a single by Kelly Hauxhurst and a fielder's choice by
Jaime Clark in the first inning. But UA pitcher Finch held the Huskies to
only one hit after the first inning.
Finch's solo home run, her 15th of the year but first in Pac-10 play, gave
UA its first run in the sixth.
Arizona concludes its schedule with games at 6 p.m. Saturday and 1 p.m.
Sunday against the No. 3-ranked UCLA Bruins. Former UA star Jenny Dalton,
the 1996 Honda Award winner as national player of the year, will be on hand
Friday for the retirement of her jersey.
Washington travels to Tempe to face Arizona State in games at the same
times. The Pac-10 regular season closes next weekend, when Arizona travels
to the Bay Area for three games.
