DePaul University
21-19
Northern Illinois
11-22
Nine-Run Sixth Inning Powers DePaul Past Northern Illinois
4/20/2022 4:56:00 PM | SOFTBALL
Season-high 16 hits hands Blue Demons eighth win in last 10 games
DEKALB, Ill. — A season-high 16 hits and an offensive outburst in the sixth inning pushed DePaul to an 11-8 victory over Northern Illinois on Wednesday afternoon at Mary M. Bell Field.
Five Blue Demons tallied multi-hit outings led by three apiece from Tori Meyer, Brooke Johnson and Carly Alvers. Zoie Rettig and Anna Wohlers added two hits each while Alvers and Rettig drove in three runs apiece. Maranda Gutierrez went yard for the fourth time this season while crossing the plate twice.
Julyana Gomez went 3.2 innings in the circle surrendering five runs on six hits before Erin Hocker entered in relief to pick up her sixth win of the season after 3.1 Innings of work allowing a pair of runs on four hits.
The first inning was a productive one as the Blue Demons took an early 1-0 advantage. Meyer sent a base hit to center field before coming around to score on an RBI-double from Johnson. Cosgrove reached on a base hit putting runners on second and third, but no more runs crossed in the first.
Northern Illinois (11-22) responded with a leadoff home run to even the score at one apiece after the first inning. The Huskies doubled up with a home run to left field to start the second inning before taking a 4-1 lead on a base hit, RBI-double to center field and Blue Demons error.
A two-run home run in the bottom of the fourth extended the Huskies lead to 6-1.
Gutierrez leadoff solo home run in the top of the fifth put some life into the Blue Demons lineup to cut the deficit to four runs before DePaul roared back in the sixth inning.
The all important sixth inning saw 14 Blue Demon at bats with the first nine batters reaching base safely. Alvers began the rally with an RBI-single to left field to push Baylee Cosgrove home and put Nicole Sullivan on third. Riley Pool drew a pinch-hit walk to load the bases before the paths were cleared on a Rettig stand up double to tie the game at 6-6. Gutierrez was hit by a pitch to put runners on the corners before Meyer, Johnson and Wohlers lead down three consecutive RBI-singles to put the Blue Demons in front 9-6. Alvers came back around and sent a two-RBI single to left field to score plate Johnson and Wohlers and give DePaul an 11-6 advantage heading into the seventh inning.
The Huskies added a pair of runs in the seventh inning but nothing more as the Blue Demons secured their nineteenth straight victory in the series between the two programs.
DePaul (21-19, 9-6 BIG EAST) will return home to Cacciatore Stadium for the final weekend series of the season, April 22-24, to host Georgetown. The series features three games over three days with the schedule mapping out for a 2 p.m. first pitch on Friday before a 1 p.m. start on Saturday and a 12 p.m. series finale on Sunday. It will be a busy weekend as the Blue Demons will celebrate the 50th anniversary of Title IX on Friday, Senior Day on Saturday and Alumni Day on Sunday.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Hocker, Erin (6-7)
L: OSTROWSKI, Delaney (3-6)
Batting:
2B: Johnson, Brooke 1 ; Sullivan, Nicole 1 ; Alvers, Carly 1 ; Rettig, Zoie 1
3B: Rettig, Zoie 1
HR: Gutierrez, Maranda 1
RBI: Gutierrez, Maranda 1 ; Meyer, Tori 1 ; Johnson, Brooke 2 ; Wohlers, Anna 1 ; Alvers, Carly 3 ; Rettig, Zoie 3
Base Running:
RUNS: Gutierrez, Maranda 2 ; Meyer, Tori 2 ; Johnson, Brooke 1 ; Wohlers, Anna 1 ; Cosgrove, Baylee 1 ; Sullivan, Nicole 1 ; Frazier, Grace 1 ; Talbot, Addison 1 ; Rettig, Zoie 1
HBP: Gutierrez, Maranda 1 ; Cosgrove, Baylee 1
Batting:
2B: KELLER, Katie 2
HR: KELLER, Katie 1 ; MALLINDER, Sam 1 ; SHUMAKER, Caitlyn 1 ; ERICKSON, Ellis 1
RBI: KELLER, Katie 3 ; MALLINDER, Sam 2 ; SHUMAKER, Caitlyn 1 ; ERICKSON, Ellis 1
SH: APATO, Kara 1
Base Running:
RUNS: KELLER, Katie 2 ; MALLINDER, Sam 1 ; SHUMAKER, Caitlyn 1 ; ERICKSON, Ellis 1 ; WALINSKI, Kelly 3
SB: APATO, Kara 1 ; WALINSKI, Kelly 1
HBP: APATO, Kara 1
