Blue Demons Fall Twice on Day One of Jax State Tournament

Friday, February 20

Jacksonville, Ala.

2:30 p.m.

DePaul University

7-5

Gardner-Webb

7-4

DePaul

Gardner-Webb

Blue Demons Fall Twice on Day One of Jax State Tournament

2/20/2026 8:40:00 PM | SOFTBALL

Box Score 1 Box Score 2 Live Stats

Ettema belts two home runs in Friday slate

JACKSONVILLE, Ala. — DePaul softball dropped a pair of games Friday afternoon at the Jax State Tournament, falling 10-9 to Gardner-Webb (7-4) on a walk-off in Game one before host Jacksonville State (8-4) claimed a 7-0 victory in Game two.

Junior designated player Lydia Ettema paced the Blue Demons offensively, launching two home runs in back-to-back at-bats and driving in five runs on the day. Chelsea Parker added an RBI double in Game one and drew three walks across the doubleheader, while Brooke Cwick recorded her first extra-base hit of the season with a double in Game two.

DePaul (7-6) utilized four pitchers in the opener. Bella Nigey made the start, tossing 1.1 innings before Gwen Baker closed out the second. Kelly Greene worked 3.0 innings in relief, and Hannah Messer handled the final 1.2 frames.

Messer earned the nod in game two, pitching 2.2 innings in her fifth start of the season. Greene followed with an inning of relief before Baker covered the final 2.1 innings.

Game 1 — DePaul 9, Gardner-Webb 10

The Blue Demons struck first in the opening frame as Alexis Houge singled and Jolie Adams drove her home on an RBI groundout to give DePaul a 1-0 lead. Bella Nigey closed out the inning, retiring Gardner-Webb in order to keep the early advantage.

Gardner-Webb (7-4) responded in the bottom of the second, scoring four runs to take a 4-1 lead. The Blue Demons fought back in the third inning, starting with a walk to Adams and a two-run double from Chelsea Parker to pull within two. The rally stalled briefly as Gardner-Webb added a solo home run later in the inning, pushing the lead to 5-2.

DePaul chipped away again in the fifth as Parker drew a walk and Lydia Ettema crushed a two-run home run to cut the deficit to 5-6. Gardner-Webb answered with a two-run homer, extending their lead to 8-5.

The Blue Demons' offense came alive in the top of the sixth. Houge walked and Adams singled, setting the stage for Ettema's three-run home run that evened the score at 8-8.

In the seventh inning, Bibianna Rodriguez led off with a double and advanced to third on a sacrifice bunt by Zoe Levine. Maya Wondaal drove her home with an RBI groundout, giving DePaul a 9-8 lead. Gardner-Webb answered in dramatic fashion, hitting a two-run walk-off home run to claim a 10-9 victory and take Game 1 of the weekend series.

Game 2 — DePaul 0, Jacksonville State 7

Houge led off the game with a single, but the Blue Demons were unable to capitalize, leaving two runners stranded in scoring position in the top of the first.

Emersyn Coulter opened the third with a single and Chelsea Parker drew a walk to give DePaul momentum, but a defensive play at the plate ended the threat and kept the game scoreless.

Jacksonville State (8-4) broke the stalemate in the bottom of the third, using four runs to take control. The Gamecocks added two more in the fourth to extend the lead to 6-0 and pushed across another run on an RBI walk in the fifth.

Brooke Cwick recorded a two-out double in the top of the seventh, but the Blue Demons were unable to mount a late rally as Jacksonville State secured the 7-0 victory.

Up Next

The Blue Demons are back tomorrow with two games against Northwestern State and Jacksonville State. First pitch against the Demons is set for 12:30 p.m. CT, with Game 2 versus the Gamecocks scheduled for 5:30 p.m.

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