DePaul University
15-18, 4-6
Seton Hall
14-14, 4-6
Blue Demons Take Down Seton Hall 2-1 in 13 Innings
4/8/2022 6:34:00 PM | SOFTBALL
Gutierrez RBI-single puts DePaul over the top in series opener
SOUTH ORANGE, N.J. — DePaul kicked off its weekend road swing in thrilling fashion on Friday afternoon with a 2-1 13-inning victory over Seton Hall at Essex County Mike Sheppard, Sr. Field.
The Blue Demons and Pirates were knotted at 1-1 for six innings of action before DePaul (15-18, 4-6 BIG EAST) broke through on a Maranda Gutierrez RBI-single to shallow right field to score Baylee Cosgrove and put the visitors in front for good.
Senior pitcher Erin Hocker started in the circle and went six innings allowing the lone run on six hits before graduate right-hander Sarah Lehman entered in relief for an eventual seven innings. Lehman struck out nine batters and surrendered just four hits to improve to 7-5 on the season.
Both squads were scoreless until the fifth inning saw the Blue Demons take the lead on an RBI-single from Kate Polucha. Gutierrez took a base after being hit by a pitch and advanced to third on a stolen base and passed ball before Polucha sent a base hit through the left side to end the stalemate.
A pair of base hits for Seton Hall (14-14, 4-6) in the bottom of the sixth put runners on first and third before a sacrifice fly to center field scored a run to tie the game 1-1.
In the eighth and ninth inning combined, the Blue Demons reached base just once as Tori Meyer was hit by a pitch.
The top of the 10th inning saw the first hit of extra frames for DePaul as Johnson sent a single down the left field line and landed at second on the throw but couldn't be advanced. The bottom half of the inning provided danger as a pair of hits saw the Pirates with a runners in scoring position with one gone before Lehman induced a pop up and line out to get out of the jam.
DePaul loaded the bases in the top of the 11th inning on back-to-back base hits from Anna Wohlers and Meyer but no damage was done. Seton Hall responded again with runners on second and third with no outs before Lehman closed the door with three outs.
The 12th inning saw both squads go down in order to swiftly send the game into its 13th frame. Wohlers picked up her third hit of the day on a triple to right field before later being ruled out at third on a fielder's choice from Cosgrove. Riley Pool pushed Cosgrove to second on a single through the left side to set the table for Gutierrez. The Whittier, Calif. native powered her first hit of the outing to right field to send Cosgrove home and give DePaul a 2-1 lead.
Seton Hall once again put runners on second and third with one gone before a ground out back to Lehman and the pitcher's ninth strikeout of the afternoon ended the game.
DePaul and Seton Hall return to action for game two on Saturday with first pitch scheduled for 12 p.m. CT. Action can be followed on FloSoftball with a subscription required for viewing.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Lehman, Sarah (7-5)
L: SMITH, Shelby (6-9)
Batting:
2B: Wohlers, Anna 1
3B: Wohlers, Anna 1
RBI: Gutierrez, Maranda 1 ; Polucha, Kate 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Gutierrez, Maranda 1 ; Cosgrove, Baylee 1
SB: Gutierrez, Maranda 1 ; Hilger, Skylor 1
HBP: Gutierrez, Maranda 1 ; Meyer, Tori 1 ; Cosgrove, Baylee 1
Batting:
2B: SMITH, Shelby 1 ; HILL, Taylor 2
RBI: HILL, Taylor 1
SF: HILL, Taylor 1
Base Running:
RUNS: WINGO, Abby 1
SB: ARRUDA, Miranda 1 ; COLONNETTA, Ashly 1
PO: CAYE, Lauren 1
