DePaul downs Mississippi Valley State in NCAA Regional
05/18/2007 | 12:00:00 | Softball
May 18, 2007
By Matt Maxey
www.siusalukis.com
CARBONDALE, Ill. DePaul pitchers Becca Heteniak and Tracie Adix combined for a no-hitter to advance past Mississippi Valley State University 10-0 in the first round of the 2007 NCAA Softball Carbondale Regional. The Blue Demons scored 10 runs on 10 hits, taking advantage of four Delta Devilette errors. With the win, DePaul advances on to face the winner of the Southern Illinois and Missouri match-up Saturday at noon. Mississippi Valley State will face the looser of the SIU and Missouri contest at 2:30 p.m.
DePaul lit up the score board first in the second inning when Linda Secka singled up the middle to score Kate Sheaks. Sandy Vojik lined a shot to second that Mississippi Valley State's Aisha Ledet was unable to handle, allowing Marie Thompson and Secka to score.
The Blue Demons added a pair of runs in the fourth inning when Ledet again found trouble when fielding a ball a second, allowing Stephanie Blagaich to reach first and Secka and Hanson to score. Marcy Wilus added a solo shot to left field in the fifth inning to extend the DePaul lead to 6-0 after five innings.
In the sixth inning DePaul loaded the bases with no outs before Sandy Vojik cleared them with a towering shot over the left field wall. The shot gave the Blue Demons a 10-0 advantage and the win by virtue of the run rule.
The Blue Demons combined for 10 hits, highlighted by Vojik who was 2-4 at the plate with four RBIs, including the game ending grand slam. Secka and Amber Patton both were 2-for-3 on the day. Heteniak earned the win, improving her record to 19-6 on the year. She left eight batters at the plate looking and walked only one. Adix saw two innings of relief work, earning four strikeouts. Nicole Henderson took the loss for Mississippi Valley State, dropping her record to 12-9 on the year. Henderson gave up 10 hits and six earned runs while striking out three.