May 1, 2009

Box Score

Softball: No. 5 Lewis 7, No. 4 Saint Joseph's 2 in PDF Format

East Peoria, Ill. - Lewis sophomore right fielder Kayla Smith (Glendale Heights, Ill./Glenbard North) and senior shortstop Kelly Dianis (Hinsdale, Ill./Hinsdale Central) each roped home runs in the fifth inning to help the No. 5 seeded Flyers to the 7-2 victory over No. 4 Saint Joseph's in the opening round of the Great Lakes Valley Conference Softball Tournament at the EastSide Centre on Friday morning.

With the win, Lewis (36-19) will now face No. 1 Missouri-St. Louis at 4 p.m. on Friday afternoon.

The Flyers tagged Saint Joseph's pitcher Sara Somogyi with three runs in the top of the second, highlighted by a two-run double from senior first baseman Carissa Castonzo (Hawthorn Woods, Ill./Lake Zurich). Castonzo (2-for-3, 2 runs, 2 RBI) would later steal third base and score on a throwing error by Puma catcher Brittnie Boerema.

St. Joe's added a run in the bottom of the fourth frame before the Flyers pulled away in the top of the fifth. Castonzo led off with a single and was plated with Smith's two-run shot to left center field, extending the Flyers' advantage to 5-1. Two batters later, Dianis pushed Lewis' lead to 6-1 with a solo home run, her fifth of the season.

"This was a good way to start the tournament," Lewis University head softball coach George DiMatteo said. "We had some clutch hits from Carissa Castonzo and some big home runs from Kayla Smith. Now we get to play UMSL in the second game and that will be a big test, but we feel good about our chances."

Lewis senior pitcher Courtney Lyons (San Pedro, Calif./San Pedro) earned the complete-game, six-hit victory for the Flyers. Lyons (12-9) fanned five batters and was able to overcome a pair of solo home runs from the Pumas for the win. Somogyi dropped to 23-10 on the campaign, allowing six runs and six hits in five innings of work.

A Catholic University sponsored by the De La Salle Christian Brothers, Lewis offers nearly 80 undergraduate majors and programs of study, accelerated degree completion options for working adults, various aviation programs and 22 graduate programs in nine fields. The mid-sized university is being honored for the fifth consecutive year by The Princeton Review and U.S. News & World Report. For more information please visit www.lewisu.edu.

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