DePaul University Athletics
DePaul University
Creighton
Connolly's Gem Leads DePaul Past Creighton, 2-1
4/19/2015 12:00:00 AM | SOFTBALL
Box Score: DePaul 2, Creighton 1
CHICAGO -- It was the senior leadership in the circle from Mary Connolly that elevated the DePaul softball team past Creighton on Sunday, 2-1. Connolly threw seven innings and surrendered just one run on four hits, while adding a season-best eight strikeouts.
The Blue Demons (17-21, 8-3 BIG EAST) got a solid outing at the plate by Kali Gardner who went 2-for-3 to pace the team. Brittany Boesel, Sabrina Kuchta and Ali Lenti each chimed in with a hit of their own en route to DePaul's eighth win of the conference slate.
After a clean first inning, the Blue Demons got on the board by a two-out single by Boesel who plated who scored Megan Leyva and gave the home team a 1-0 advantage.
Creighton (20-14, 5-8) was kept off-balance by Connolly all afternoon and didn't register a hit until the third inning.
Both teams managed to piece together two hits across the next two innings but squandered their opportunities heading into the fifth.
In the bottom of the fifth frame, Gardner came to the dish with two outs and a pinch-runner on first. The junior laced a frozen rope to the right-center gap that scored Haydn Christensen and gave DePaul a 2-0 cushion.
Creighton finally scored a run when it used a double to right field by catcher Blake Ringle to bring it down to a 2-1 ball game.
The Bluejays were sent down in order by Connolly, keyed by two strikeouts, to end the game and thwart the sweep.
In summation, Connolly threw five innings without allowing a hit in the game as Creighton did all of its damage in the third and sixth innings.
DePaul has a short turnaround as the team is next in action at Notre on Tuesday, April 21 at 3 p.m.
Notes: This was the 16th meeting between the programs all-time... DePaul holds a 9-7 edge in the series... Morgan Maize saw her 15-game hitting streak come to a close... Maize, however, still maintained her streak of reaching base safely and has now done so in the last 16 games... Connolly has also reached base safely in DePaul's last 16 contests... Kali Gardner notched her fourth multi-hit game of the season... in her last eight appearances (seven starts), Connolly holds a 1.64 ERA in 51.1 innings of work and has 37 strikeouts... the Blue Demons move to 10-4 on the season when leading after the fourth inning... DePaul out-hit its opponent for the 15th time this in 2015... the Blue Demons avoided a sweep and have not surrendered a sweep by a BIG EAST opponent since 2012.
