DePaul Wins State Farm Illinois Collegiate Softball Championship

Sept. 21, 2008

NORMAL, Ill. - After 24 games played over two days between 12 teams, the inaugural State Farm Illinois Collegiate Softball Championship has concluded with DePaul taking the tournament's championship title via a 12-3 six-inning, run-rule victory over Northwestern at Champion Fields Sunday. The tournament featured 11 of the 12 NCAA Division I softball teams in the State of Illinois, along with Heartland Community College.

The event was officially hosted by the Bloomington-Normal Area Sports Commission, Bloomington-Normal Area Convention and Visitors Bureau, Town of Normal Parks and Recreation Department and Illinois State Athletics, with State Farm Insurance serving as the official title sponsor.

In the Gold Bracket, Northwestern had little trouble defeating UIC, 7-0, and DePaul took a 7-6 victory over Illinois. That set up the tournament's championship game between 2007 Women's College World Series (WCWS) participants DePaul and Northwestern.

In the Gold Bracket championship game, Northwestern and DePaul were tied at 3-3 until the Blue Demon lineup exploded for nine runs in the decisive sixth inning. The frame began with a quick out, and then two-straight singles and a fielder's choice loaded the bases for Jackie Tarulli-Fisher, who belted a grand slam over the left-center field fence to put the Blue Demons ahead, 7-5.

DePaul did not stop there, as another single was followed quickly by a two-run home run to give the Blue Demons a 9-5 advantage. Following a strikeout, an error by the Northwestern pitcher again loaded the bases, and then Amber Patton's single up the middle drove in all three base runners and gave DePaul its 12-3 victory.

In the Silver Bracket, Eastern Illinois' Amber May no-hit Illinois State in a 4-0 shutout of the Redbirds. In the early-afternoon game, Southern Illinois-Carbondale defeated Bradley, 12-3, to set up a SIU-C versus Eastern Illinois matchup in the Silver Bracket Championship game. Both sides remained knotted at 3-3 until a sacrifice fly ball by Eastern Illinois in the bottom of the ninth inning with runners on second and third sealed a 4-3 victory for the Panthers.

The Bronze Bracket began with Western Illinois recording a 2-1 victory over Southern Illinois-Edwardsville. Northern Illinois took a 6-5 victory over Heartland Community College, which set up the Bronze Bracket Championship game between NIU and WIU. The Huskies rode the momentum from their win over Heartland earlier in the day to a 3-0 shutout of the Westerwinds to claim the Bronze Bracket championship.

ILLINOIS STATE GAME RECAPS
Silver Bracket Game 1 - Eastern Illinois 4, Illinois State 0
Just 10 hours after being upset by Illinois-Chicago, 7-4, in an 11th-inning walk-off home run late Saturday night, the Illinois State softball team once again struggled to produce in the clutch, as the Redbirds were no-hit by Eastern Illinois' Amber May in a 4-0 loss to the Panthers. ISU managed to place just three runners on base the entire game, with the Redbirds reaching on a walk and error in the third inning and on a hit-by-pitch in the seventh.

May, the former Heartland Community College All-American, was stellar in the circle for the Panthers, as she allowed no hits over seven full innings and struck out 10 in the win.

Freshman pitcher Jordan Birch suffered the loss for the Redbirds in her first-career start. The Monroe, Wash., native struggled in just 2 1/3 innings, where she allowed three runs (all earned) on two hits. Sophomore Chrissy Burton relieved Birch with one out in the bottom of the third and promptly gave up a home run to the first batter she faced. Burton settled down, however, and allowed just one more hit to the Panthers over the final four innings.

Freshman pitcher Jordan Birch's debut in the circle for Illinois State got off to a rocky start after Eastern Illinois' Sarah Coppert hit a two-out, solo home run over the center field fence in the bottom of the first inning to give the Panthers a 1-0 lead.

An error by ISU shortstop Niki Stansell with one out in the bottom of the third led to EIU's second run of the game. With a runner on first base, Angela Danca lined an RBI double into the left-center field gap to put the Panthers up, 2-0. Chrissy Burton then took over for Birch, and on the second pitch that she threw, gave up a two-run home run to Coppert, which put the Redbirds in a 4-0 hole.

Silver Bracket Consolation Game - Illinois State 2, Bradley 1
Illinois State's newcomers continued to shine in their inaugural fall exhibition season with the Redbirds. This time, it was freshman Becky Baltikas who provided the offensive spark for ISU, as the Homer Glen, Ill., native went a perfect 3-for-3 at the plate, which included a solo home run and two RBI, to lead the Redbirds to a 2-1 victory over Bradley in the Silver Bracket consolation game.

Illinois State also picked up hits from Katie Mathis (1-for-2), Jessie Buker (1-for-3) and Michelle Henderson (1-for-3).

Bradley was led at the plate by leadoff batter Lindsay Watkins, who recorded singles in all three of her at-bats.

After being no-hit in their first game of the day, a 4-0 loss to Eastern Illinois, the Redbirds wasted little time getting their bats going against the Braves. Baltikas led off the game with a line-drive single into left field that ended a seven-inning hitless drought for the Redbirds.

Illinois State again capitalized on a leadoff hit, this time in the top of the third inning. After Mathis led off the frame with a single into left field, Baltikas produced her second hit of the game, a double through the right side of a drawn-in infield, to plate Mathis and give the Redbirds a 1-0 advantage.

The Baltikas hitting machine continued in the bottom of the fifth, as she drove a two-out, solo home run over the left-center field fence to give ISU the 2-0 lead.

The Redbirds' control of the game slipped a little in the top of the sixth. After ISU starting pitcher Amber Smith recorded two quick Bradley outs, the Braves strung together a single, walk and a double to cut the Redbird lead in half (2-1).

Aside from the Braves' one run in the top of the sixth, Smith was sharp in the circle for ISU throughout the game. She surrendered just one run on six hits with only two walks allowed. Fifteen of the Braves' 21 outs in the game were on the ground.

Illinois State will resume its fall exhibition season at 5 p.m. Wednesday when it plays host to Illinois Central College at Marian Kneer Softball Stadium.

2008 STATE FARM ILLINOIS COLLEGIATE SOFTBALL CHAMPIONSHIP DAY TWO RESULTS
Gold Bracket
Northwestern 7, Illinois-Chicago 0
DePaul 7, Illinois 6
Consolation: Illinois 7, Illinois-Chicago 3 (11)
Championship: DePaul 12, Northwestern 3 (6)

Silver Bracket
Eastern Illinois 4, Illinois State 0
SIU-Carbondale 12, Bradley 3
Consolation: Illinois State 2, Bradley 1
Championship: Eastern Illinois 4, SIU-Carbondale (9)

Bronze Bracket
Northern Illinois 6, Heartland CC 5
Western Illinois 2, Southern Illinois-Edwardsville 1
Consolation: Southern Illinois-Edwardsville 1, Heartland CC 0
Championship: Northern Illinois 3, Western Illinois 0