The UW-Whitewater softball team had to beat the number one team in the country, twice, to do it ---and they did. The Warhawks defeated DePauw University 6-2 in eight innings in the National Collegiate Athletic Association Division III regional hosted by Augustana College in Rock Island, Illinois to advance to the final eight series in Salem, Virginia May 16-20. UW-Whitewater's post-season site
box score
UW-W, 35-9, is making its sixteenth national tournament appearance, its thirteenth in the NCAA tourney (1978, 1979, 1980, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1991, 1996. 1998, 1999, 2000, and 2003). The Warhawks finished second in 1987, third in 1985, and fourth in 1984.
The field and opening round games for Salem have been set.
11:00 Friday ... Louisiana College, 42-5, vs. Rhode Island College, 36-7
1:30 Friday ... New York-Cortland, 36-11, vs. UW-Whitewater, 36-7
4:00 Friday ... UW-Eau Claire, 26-11, vs. Ithaca College, 34-10
6:30 Friday ... Lynchburg College, 39-6, vs. Muskingum College, 40-10
UW-W and DePauw met five times this season. DePauw won two games in March, 2-0 and 6-3, when the teams met in Florida. DePauw won again, 6-5 in eight innings, when the teams met Saturday in the regional. That kept the Tigers unbeaten in the double elimination regional and put the Warhawks' backs to the wall. Whitewater came back with a 2-1 win, this time in nine innings, Sunday in the regional to force Monday's decisive game.
Monday's regional final wasn't much different than the previous meetings, dominated by good pitching and close enough to require extra innings.
DePauw, the defending Division III champion, broke a scoreless duel wiht a a run on two hits in the bottom of the fourth. UW-W's Liz Yucius (jr, C) tied the score with a two out home run, her third of the season, in the fifth. DePauw regained the lead in the sixth, with Kaitlyn Davitt (so, LF) leading off with a single, moving to second on a sacrifice, and coming on on an RBI double by Carolyn Bartlett (so, CF).
A leadoff home run by Lauren Cruz (Des Plaines, IL/Maine West) (so, LF) in the top of the seventh knotted the game, and with a scoreless DePauw bottom of the seventh the teams moved in to their third straight extra inning game.
Through seven innings Whitewater's Jessica Stang (Minnetonka, MN/Minnetonka) (fr, L) and DePauw's Megan Soulz (so, R) battled to a draw, both allowing two earned runs.
UW-W opened the first extra inning with back-to-back doubles by Amy Gahl (Beloit/Parkview) (jr, CF) and Ashley Smith (Elgin, IL/St. Edward Catholic) (jr, 2B). Suzanne Gersich (Wadsworth, IL/Warren) (jr, RF) singled, and Amanda LeBeau (Worth, IL/Richards) (so, SS) followed with a three-run homer, her team-leading fourteenth of the season. Typical of the series, DePauw did not go quietly in their half of the eighth, putting two runners on before Stang closed out the game.
Stang, 12-4, allowed eight hits. She walked three and struck out five. Soulz, 36-4, gave up nine hits, and struck out eight with one walk.
DePauw, ranked number one in the National Fastpitch Coaches Association Division III poll, ended the year 40-4.
Yucius, Stang, Gahl, LeBeau, Smith and Gersich were named to the fifteen-player regional all-tournament team.
For additional information: Brenda Volk, UW-W coach
