DePaul University Athletics
DePaul Falls to Notre Dame in the Championship Game
5/10/2009 12:00:00 AM | SOFTBALL
LOUISVILLE The No. 19/19 DePaul softball team fell to Notre Dame 1-0 in the Championship game of the BIG EAST Conference tournament on Saturday at Louisville’s Ulmer Stadium.
DePaul (37-12) out hit the Irish 5-2, but it was Notre Dame’s Heather Johnson’s RBI double in the sixth inning that was the difference maker.
The Blue Demons left a pair of runners stranded in the bottom of the second. Designated player Lauren Frankiewicz registered the first hit of the game and Brittney Yniguez followed with a shot to shallow right center. With two outs, the runners were left on the basepath as DePaul’s final batter Shea Warren grounded out to end the first real scoring threat of the afternoon.
Notre Dame (41-15) used an error and two wild pitches to put a runner on third with two outs, however DePaul catcher Jackie Tarulli-Fisher used the entire area behind home plate to make an exceptional catch in foul territory to end the Irish’s scoring chance in the fifth.
A lead off walk to Beth Northway came back to haunt DePaul starter Becca Heteniak (24-7), who had retired 15 of the first 18 batters she faced. Following Northways’s free pass, Linda Hohan popped out before Johnson launched a double off the fence in right center to score the only run of the ballgame in the sixth inning.
Heading into the bottom half of the frame, Tarulli-Fisher reached on an error with one out, Heteniak hit into a double play to leave the Blue Demons with just three outs to even the score on the offensive end.
In the bottom of the seventh, the Blue Demons made it interesting as Frankiewicz drilled a shot to the top of the fence in right center for a double and pinch hitter Samantha Morgan lined a shot to the first baseman which allowed pinch runner Lynsey Ciezki to advance 60 feet from home and Morgan was safe at first. With one out, head coach Eugene Lenti went to his bench and called up Simone Ashkar, who was 1-for-1 in the championship thus far. Ashkar lined another shot at the Irish first baseman; this time Christine Lux nabbed the ball and was able to double off Ciezki at third.
Brittney Bargar (23-10) earned the complete game win as she struck out three and walked one. She was also named the tournament’s Most Valuable Player.
Heteniak suffered the loss and struck out five and ran her Championship total to 28 Ks to earn all-tournament honors. Jackie Tarulli-Fisher and Amber Patton joined Heteniak on the all-tournament squad.
The Blue Demons await the NCAA Selection Show on Sunday, May 10. The field of 64 will be revealed at 9 p.m. (CST) on ESPNU. DePaul has made the NCAA Championship the last two seasons and 13 times in the program’s history since 1994 while it has advanced to the Women’s College World Series four times, most recently in 2007.
