DePaul University
Seton Hall
Blue Demons edge Seton Hall in BIG EAST opener
3/24/2018 12:00:00 AM | SOFTBALL
Box Score
SOUTH ORANGE, N.J. - The DePaul softball team opened BIG EAST play with a 3-2 victory over Seton Hall on Saturday morning as first baseman Haydn Christensen drove in two of the Blue Demons' three runs in the win.
Seton Hall (13-17, 0-1 BE) jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the opening inning of play. First, center fielder Janae Barracato sent the third pitch of the leadoff at bat over the right field fence for the 1-0 lead. Two pitches later, catcher Payton Beaver pushed a single up the middle. After a groundout and a passed ball moved Beaver to third, Hailey Arteaga drove in the Pirates' second run of the contest with a RBI-single to center.
DePaul (18-11, 1-0 BE) responded with a run of its own in the top of the second to cut Seton Hall's lead to 2-1 on an RBI-double by Christensen.
Two innings later, Christensen struck again with an RBI-single to tie the game at 2-2.
In the top of the sixth, the Blue Demons scored the go-ahead run off a Pirate error to take the 3-2 advantage. The two-out rally was started with a double by right fielder Megan Leyva. After Brianna Viles reached on a pinch-hit walk, a mishandled chopper by Seton Hall's second baseman allowed Leyva to score the game-winner for DePaul.
Sophomore Missy Zoch (10-3) picked up her 10th win of 2018, allowing just one earned run on five hits while striking out eight Pirates. Saturday's effort was Zoch's eighth complete game of the season.
The Blue Demons are back on the field at 1:30 p.m. in game two of Saturday's doubleheader. DePaul wraps up the three-game series against Seton Hall on Sunday at 10 a.m.
Game Notes
-Christensen has four doubles and seven RBIs in 2018.
-Zoch now has 79 strikeouts in 85.1 innings of work.
-The Blue Demons lead the all-time series against Seton Hall 24-6.
