Valpo Softball Edged by Notre Dame

Valpo Softball Edged by Notre Dame

In a game which featured copious scoring chances for both Valpo and Notre Dame Wednesday afternoon in South Bend, Ind., a swing of the bat with the bases empty proved to be the difference, as the Fighting Irish connected on a solo homer in the sixth inning for the decisive strike as the Beacons fell 1-0.

How It Happened

–          In what would become a theme for the game on both sides, Azalya Lopez (Corona, Calif./Eleanor Roosevelt [MSU Moorhead]) worked out of trouble in the bottom of the first. The Irish put their first two runners on base and eventually loaded the bases with two outs before Lopez induced a grounder to keep them off the board.

–          Both squads got a runner to third base with two outs in the second and Valpo did so in the third as well, but all those chances went for naught.

–          Lopez recorded three straight outs in the bottom of the third after Notre Dame recorded back-to-back hits to lead off the inning.

–          Back-to-back one-out singles by Kayden Krug (Milford, Ohio/Mount Notre Dame) and Kim Rodas (San Bernardino, Calif./Cajon), followed by a stolen base by Rodas, put two runners in scoring position with one out in the top of the fourth. But an infield grounder forced Krug to hold at third, and a liner back to the circle kept Valpo from opening the scoring.

–          Notre Dame loaded the bases with one out without the benefit of a hit in the bottom of the fourth, taking advantage of two walks and a hit batter. Lopez got a ground ball on which the Beacons came home for the force for out number two, and they then turned to Erin Metz (Wheaton, Ill./Wheaton North) out of the bullpen, who got a fly ball for the third out, keeping the game scoreless.

–          Lyna Vasquez (Moreno Valley, Calif./Valley View) led off the top of the fifth by dropping a single into shallow center and Madison Vrastil (Oak Forest, Ill./Andrew) followed by lining a single the opposite way to put two on with nobody out. Following a sacrifice bunt, a walk loaded the bases with one away, but again the Beacons were stymied, as a strikeout and a foul-out ended the frame.

–          Valpo put itself in an even better position in the sixth, loading the bases with nobody out on an error and back-to-back base hits by Kaia Garnica (Plainfield, Ill./Plainfield Central) and Kyndal Shively (Bloomington, Ill./University). Again, though, the Beacons came up empty, as a strikeout, a force out at home and a foul-out put another zero on the board.

–          Notre Dame found the breakthrough in the bottom of the sixth, as Avery Houlihan led off the inning with a solo homer to right-center.

–          Krug kept hope alive for Valpo in the seventh with a two-out single, but a grounder ended the game.

Inside the Game

–          The combination of Lopez and Metz in the circle held Notre Dame to just one run on five hits, the best performance by Valpo’s defense and pitching against the Fighting Irish since a 2-0 win in 1989 — 38 matchups ago in the series.

–          The one-run loss was the Beacons’ closest game against Notre Dame since falling in walkoff fashion to the Irish in 2010, 7-6. Before that, you have to go back to 1996 to find the last one-run game in the series.

–          Valpo out-hit Notre Dame 8-5 on Wednesday, the first time it has outhit the Irish since the aforementioned 2010 game.

–          Wednesday was Valpo’s first 1-0 loss since falling by that final score in the regular season finale against Illinois State in 2019. In the interim, Valpo had six straight wins in games decided by a 1-0 final.

–          Wednesday’s contest featured no 1-2-3 innings for either squad. Valpo left 12 runners on base, its second-highest total of the season in a seven-inning contest, while the Fighting Irish stranded 10.

–          Krug and Vrastil each had two of the Beacons’ eight base hits Wednesday. For Krug, it was her eighth multi-hit game of the year, while Vrastil tallied multiple base knocks for the 18^th time — tying the most by a Valpo player since 2014.

–          Krug also drew a walk as well, reaching base in three of her four plate appearances.

Next Up

Valpo (18-25) will have a delayed start to its final home series of the regular season this weekend, as the series opener against Drake has been postponed due to inclement weather in the forecast. The Beacons and Bulldogs will meet for a Saturday doubleheader beginning at noon, with Valpo’s Senior Day ceremony slated to take place after game two.