Irish combine for no-hitter
By AARON RONSHEIM
Sports Writer
In the first game of Tuesday's doubleheader against Valparaiso Steffany Stenglein and Carrie Wisen combined for their first collegiate no-hitter. The Irish (18-12) extended their winning streak to 10 games and defeated the Crusaders 4-0.
"That was nice," Irish head coach Deanna Gumpf said. "I am sure they enjoyed it. They really need that with a big weekend coming up."
Stenglein pitched the first three innings, while Wisen pitched the last four innings for her sixth victory of the season. Both pitchers had five strikeouts and two walks.
Wisen and Stenglein presented different styles for the Crusaders. Stenglein used her rising fastball to dominate the Valparaiso hitters, while Wisen used a great changeup to keep the batters guessing.
It is the 29th no-hitter in Notre Dame softball history and seventh combined no-hitter. The last no-hitter thrown by an Irish pitcher was on April 25, 2001, by Christian Schmidt in a 1-0 victory over the University of Toledo.
The Irish pushed all four of their runs across the plate in the third inning. Back-to-back singles by center fielder Jenny Kriech and third baseman Megan Cioli put runners at the corners for shortstop Andria Bledsoe. Bledsoe responded by hitting the first pitch she saw over the center field fence for a 3-0 lead.
The homerun occurred because of a mistake — a missed sign.
"It was supposed to be a take, but I swung anyway," Bledsoe said.
Even though Bledsoe missed the sign, Gumpf was happy about the end result.
"That was take," Gumpf said. "Since she hit the ball out, I will take it. Anything else would have made me angry."
The Irish would add another run on Wisen's double that scored first baseman Lisa Mattison.
Wisen continued her strong pitching performance in the second game with a one-hit shutout leading to an 8-0 victory. Wisen (7-4) would not give up a hit until the fourth inning.
By that time, though, the Irish already jumped out to a 2-0 lead. In the third, Cioli and catcher Jarrah Myers hit back-to-back RBI singles to give the Irish the lead.
In the fourth, the Irish put six runs on the board. Irish designated player Annie Dell'Aria lined a base hit down the right field line to drive in two runs. After a walk to Kriech loaded the bases, Cioli's sacrifice fly brought home a run and all Irish base runners moved up one base. Bledsoe then followed with a two-run single to finish the Irish scoring.
Even though the Irish have played well over the last few weeks, there are still a few areas where they are looking to improve.
"We didn't do a lot of the little things," Gumpf said. "We didn't run the bases very well in the first game. In the second game we were a lot better at that. I think we didn't adjust too well when we were at bat in the second game. We have to make sure we do the little things."
The Irish will continue their home stand with a non-league game, against Purdue on Thursday and they resume Big East play Friday against Connecticut.
All Sports Stories for Wednesday, April 10, 2002
