DePaul University Athletics
DePaul University
Montana
Softball Travels to Montana for Montana Classic
3/10/2022 6:41:00 PM | SOFTBALL
Blue Demons to face Montana and Seattle in three-day tournament
CHICAGO — DePaul softball is set to hit the road for the final weekend of non-conference play with a trip to Missoula, Mont. for the Montana Classic. The Blue Demons will meet the Grizzlies for a doubleheader on Friday before facing Seattle for one game apiece on Saturday and Sunday.
Friday's first pitch for game one against the Grizzlies will begin at 12:30 p.m. CT with the second following at approximately 3 p.m. On Saturday, DePaul will face Seattle at 12:30 p.m. before meeting the Redhawks again on Sunday at 11 a.m. for the weekend finale.
All games will be streamed live on ESPN+ with a subscription required while live stats are also available. All live links can be found on the softball schedule page.
Montana is 9-11 heading into the weekend and are coming off a 3-2 showing at the Grand Canyon Invitational in Phoenix, Ariz. Julie Phelps has averaged .345 through 20 games and leads the team with 19 hits and 11 RBI. Dana Butterfield and Allie Brock share the bulk of the pitching for the Grizzlies. Butterfield holds a 3.52 ERA and has struck out 25 batters in 59.2 innings. Brock has thrown 67 innings and struck out 37 with.a 5-6 mark. Saturday's doubleheader will mark the first between the two programs.
Seattle travels to Montana with a 12-10 record. The Redhawks began the season 5-0 after visiting Rosemont for the DePaul Dome Tournament the first weekend of the season. Last time out, Seattle split a doubleheader with Robert Morris on Wednesday, March 9 with a narrow 3-1 loss and a 10-2 victory in six innings. Carley Nance leads the Redhawks with 23 RBI on 19 hits and a .322 average. A trio of pitches have seen the bulk of the work for Seattle with Stefanie Madrigal boasting a 2.24 ERA while tallying 39 strikeouts on 65.2 innings of work. Saturday and Sunday will mark the second and third all-time meetings with the Redhawks. DePaul and Seattle last met in February of 2012 when the Blue Demons picked up a 7-0 win in Hawaii.
DePaul is 7-11 on the season and went 2-3 last weekend with wins over Tulsa and RV Stanford. The Blue Demons fell to Tulsa, Minnesota and No. 8 Oklahoma State. Brooke Johnson, a two-time BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll selection, paces the Blue Demons offensively. The junior firstbaseman leads the Blue Demons in hits (22), RBI (18), on-base percentage (.469), batting average (.393) and home runs (4). Graduate shortstop Maranda Gutierrez is batting .340 and has totaled 18 hits while scoring 11 runs and driving home eight. Erin Hocker, Sarah Lehman and Natalie Halvorson have shared the pitching duties.
The Blue Demons will return home for its BIG EAST opening series March 18-20 when Butler visits Cacciatore Stadium for a three-game slate.
