CHICAGO – For the second-straight week the Illinois State softball team fell victim to a walk off hit in the bottom of the seventh inning. DePaul defeated ISU 7-6 Tuesday in Chicago.
ISU got off to a slow start, going down 1-2-3 in the first two innings. Meanwhile, DePaul put two runners in scoring position in the first, but ISU starter Sarah Finck worked out of the jam. In the second inning, Finck could not work her way out of trouble, relinquishing two runs to the Blue Demons.
Down 2-0, ISU recorded its first hit in the third inning with a single off the bat of Kara Repp, but she would be stranded at second base. Finck found her groove in the bottom of the frame, sitting the Blue Demons down in order.
The Redbirds knocked on the door in the fourth. Jordan de los Reyes drew a one out walk and moved over to second on a groundout. With two outs, Riley Strandgard singled to put runners on the corners. However, the Redbirds were unable to push across a run.
DePaul added to its lead in the bottom of the fourth, busting the game open with a big four-run frame. After a leadoff walk, Ali Lenti hit her second double of the day, driving in a run to make it 3-0. Morgan Maize followed Lenti with a base hit that plated Lenti to extend DePaul's lead to 4-0. Following Maize's hit, Finck was pulled in favor of McKensie Vissering.
Vissering allowed a two-run homer to Mary Connolly, but recovered to record the final two outs. Both teams went scoreless in the fifth, as ISU left a runner on base and Vissering worked a 1-2-3 inning.
In the sixth, the dormant Redbird offense awoke. With one out, De los Reyes, Stephanie Gallant, and Strandgard all reached base to load the bases. Payton Billups stepped into the box to hit and, after falling behind 0-2 in the count, worked a walk to drive in ISU's first run.
Abby Turczyn grounded into a fielder's choice on the next play, which scored another run making it 6-2. Repp then stepped up and hit her second single of the day, driving in the third run of the game. The hit parade continued with Lindsey Greene's line drive double to centerfield that wiped the bases clean, cutting the DePaul lead to one.
Annie Heineman then singled, which scored Greene, but it was not without a great bit of base running. Greene rounded third as the throw came into the plate, With the catcher fielding the throw on the first base side of home, Greene slid around the outside of the plate, avoiding the tag and tying the game.
Vissering kept momentum in ISU's favor, working a quick bottom of the sixth. However, DePaul's Mary Connolly answered right back, working a 1-2-3 inning of her own in the top of the seventh.
After Vissering retired the previous eight hitters, the leadoff batter in the seventh reached on an error. A groundball out pushed the runner over to second. Vissering then recorded a strikeout for out number two. Nicole Pihl then came to bat and hit a bloop down the right field line. The ball landed just inches fair and scored the winning run from second.
It's the second-straight week that ISU has lost a nonconference game on a walk off and it's the third-straight week that ISU has lost a nonconference game in the final inning.
Vissering took the loss, which drops her to 1-8 on the season. The Redbird offense recorded seven hits on the day and were led by Repp and Greene who each finished 2-3 with a run scored. Repp added an RBI while Greene had two.
ISU falls to 18-21 on the season and will travel to Wichita State for a three-game series Saturday and Sunday. First pitch Saturday is scheduled for noon and a live audio broadcast of all three games will be available on GoRedbirds.com.
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