Missouri
#14 DePaul
Tiger Softball Season Comes To An End in Carbondale
5/20/2007 12:00:00 AM | Softball
May 20, 2007
Carbondale, Ill. -Playing in their second NCAA Regional Championship game in three years, the 19th-ranked Missouri softball team (40-24) saw its season come to an end when 14th-ranked DePaul (44-11), blanked the Tigers, 3-0, at Charlotte West Stadium in Carbondale, Ill. With the win, DePaul advances to its second NCAA Super Regional appearance since 2005.
DePaul tallied eight hits on the day, with designated player Jackie Tarulli-Fisher crushing a third inning two run homer to put the Blue Demons on the board first. Tiger pitcher Jen Bruck (St. Peters, Mo.) made her 31st start of the season in the circle, throwing three complete innings and striking out three before being relieved by freshman lefty Jana Hainey (Raymore, Mo.). Prior to leaving the game Bruck pitched herself out of a bases loaded first inning Blue Demon threat. Giving up two singles and hitting three-hole hitter Marcy Wilus, Bruck brought the inning to an end after striking out leftfielder Kate Sheaks and forcing Becca Heteniak to fly out to left field.
Hainey, serving in relief for the 22nd game of her freshman campaign, fanned two batters in three innings of work. One run, unearned, came across with Hainey in the circle. Taking first on a fielding error, pinch runner Katie Hanson advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt and scored on pinch hitter Jessica Evans' single in the bottom of the sixth frame.
Unable to string any of their four hits together, five Tigers were left on base with three stranded in scoring position. Missouri's pitching staff of Bruck and Hainey together stranded nine Blue Demons' on base. Three Tigers, freshman Julie Silver (Chesterfield, Mo.), senior Kathy Masterson (St. Louis, Mo.) and redshirt junior Micaela Minner (Sanger, Texas) all recorded doubles off of Heteniak who improved to 20-6 on the season.
