May 8, 2009
Box Score
NCAA Midwest Softball Regional: No. 13 Saginaw Valley State 2, Lewis 1 (9 inn.) in PDF Format 
University Center, Mich. - Entering Friday's NCAA Midwest Regional showdown against #13 Saginaw Valley State, the Lewis University softball team held the fourth-best fielding percentage in the nation.
Unfortunately for Lewis, their defense proved to be their Achilles heel as the Flyers committed three errors on the afternoon, leading to two unearned runs, as the host Cardinals claimed the 2-1 come-from-behind victory in nine innings at the SVSU Sports Complex.
"We had our chances," Lewis University head softball coach George DiMatteo said. "We had nine hits today and we should score more than one run. We had opportunity after opportunity and we just couldn't take advantage of them when they presented themselves."
With the score tied at one in the bottom of the ninth inning, SVSU shortstop Nicole Fick led off with a double to right center and was pinch run for by Ashley Coffin. Coffin moved to third on a sacrifice bunt by right fielder Ashley Jordan.
SVSU designated player Nikki Bigelow stepped to the plate and Cardinals' head coach Everett Roper put on the squeeze play.
Lewis starting pitcher Courtney Lyons (San Pedro, Calif./San Pedro) fielded the bunt cleanly and fed the ball to Flyer catcher Brittany DiPietro (Bolingbrook, Ill./Joliet Catholic) and Coffin appeared to be out by a safe distance.
Coffin, however, knocked the ball out of DiPietro's hands and scored the winning run for the Cardinals.
With the victory, Saginaw Valley State improves to 36-9 and will face Northern Kentucky at 10 a.m. (EST) on Saturday. The Flyers drop to 38-19 and take on Ferris State at 12:30 p.m. (EST) tomorrow.
Lyons (12-12) was once again, the tough luck loser for the Flyers, as she held the Cardinals to three hits in nine innings of work while fanning eight batters. Friday's loss marked the sixth time this season that Lyons has dropped a one-run decision.
"Courtney Lyons deserved a better fate," DiMatteo said. "She could not have pitched any better. She gave up two unearned runs, but sometimes that's the way it goes."
SVSU reliever Kari Bowlby (11-1) earned the win, tossing 1.2 innings of scoreless relief while fanning two batters.
The game was scoreless through the first four innings, and it appeared that the Flyers got on the board first in the fifth inning. Flyers' senior first baseman Carissa Castonzo (Hawthorn Woods, Ill./Lake Zurich) led off the frame with a triple and scored on a sacrifice fly by senior left fielder Lisa Gartland (Escanaba, Mich./Escanaba).
Castonzo, however, was ruled out for leaving the base early and the run was taken away from the Flyers.
The following inning proved to be a different story for the Flyers, as senior shortstop Kelly Dianis (Hinsdale, Ill./Hinsdale Central) reached base with a one-out single and stole second base.
Sophomore third baseman Stephanie Trapp (Tinley Park, Ill./Andrew) plated Dianis with a RBI single to left field, putting the Flyers ahead, 1-0.
The Cardinals answered in the bottom half of the inning, as senior first baseman Stacy Kraatz reached base on a fielding error by Dianis. SVSU pinch runner Billi Hoeppner moved to second base on a sacrifice bunt and scored on a RBI single by Jordan to even the score at 1-apiece.
Dianis, Trapp, Gartland and freshman center fielder Traci Frietag (Westmont, Ill./Hinsdale Central) led the Flyers offensively with two hits apiece.
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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