DePaul University
Syracuse (Semifinals)
DePaul Has No Luck Against Syracuse Ace
5/13/2011 12:00:00 AM | SOFTBALL
May 13, 2011
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - On a day when black cats and broken mirrors are all the rage, DePaul was ready for a healthy dose of good luck.
But there wasn't much good fortune for the Blue Demons on Friday the 13th during a 2-0 loss to Syracuse in the semifinals of the BIG EAST Conference Championship tournament at Ulmer Stadium.
Winning pitcher Jenna Caira (33-9) pitched a two-hitter as Syracuse advanced to the title game on Saturday to face Louisville.
"If we could have a first-inning, do-over, we would've been fine today," said DePaul coach Eugene Lenti. "In the postseason, you really have to take advantage of your opportunities offensively, and we didn't."
Syracuse's Stephanie Watts led off the bottom of the first with a triple to right field. Lisaira Daniels followed with an RBI triple to center field. Gibbs' one-out single gave Syracuse a 2-0 lead.
The Orange then loaded the bases with two out. Starting pitcher Lindsey Dean came back to strike out Morgan Nandid.
The senior right-hander settled down and retired the Orange three-up, three-down in the second. After the rocky start, Dean went on to retire 10 Syracuse batters in a row.
"Other than the first inning, Lindsey did a good job out there," Lenti said. "And Bree (Brown) did very well in relief."
The Orange had runners on second and third with no out in the fifth when Brown took over in the circle. She struck out the first two batters and induced a popup from clean-up hitter Gibbs.
In two innings of relief, Brown struck out four and gave up one hit.
Sean Plese reached on an error and stole second before Kirsten Verdun walked in the first inning with one out. But Samantha Dodd struck out swinging and Lynsey Ciezki grounded back to Caira.
The Blue Demons got their first hit in the fourth inning when Dodd singled to right with one out. She then stole second and advanced to third on Ciezki's groundout. After battling Caira for 11 pitches, Dean also grounded out.
There were runners on first and second with two out in the fifth when Plese struck out.
"We didn't make the most of the few chances we did get," Lenti said. "Syracuse (43-11) was the better team today.
"You're not going to get too many opportunities against Caira. We only had two hits. There's a reason why she is the BIG EAST Pitcher of the Year."
DePaul (39-13) will await the NCAA Softball Selection Show at 9 p.m. Sunday on ESPNU to see if they it compete in the NCAA tournament for the 14th time in the last 15 years.
"Hopefully the selection committee takes into account our record and how well we've played this year---including that 16-game winning streak," Lenti said.
NOTES: Lenti notched the 1,100th victory of his illustrious 30-year career with Thursday's 5-2 decision over Rutgers in the opener of the BIG EAST Championship tournament... after Friday's game, Lenti has a career record of 1,100-513-6... DePaul is now 9-5 in BIG EAST tournament games... it's the second year in a row that Syracuse has eliminated the Blue Demons from the BIG EAST tournament in the semifinal round... Dodd and Brittney Yniguez each had a hit for DePaul... Dean (I0-6) went four innings and gave up two runs on five hits... Brown pitched two innings and gave up just one hit while striking out four.
