April 1, 2010
NOTRE DAME, Ind. – Jody Valdivia fired a two-hit shutout and Sadie Pitzenberger connected on a sixth-inning single to extend her hitting streak to 26 games as No. 24 Notre Dame defeated Rutgers, 8-0, Thursday at Melissa Cook Stadium. The Irish pounded out 12 hits over six innings, with seven coming in the six-run final frame.
Notre Dame (25-6 overall, 4-0 BIG EAST) won its fifth straight home game and will face Rutgers at 11 a.m. (ET) on Saturday (April 3) for a doubleheader to finish the three-contest BIG EAST softball series.
Valdivia (19-3) carried a no-hitter into the sixth before the Scarlet Knights (12-16, 0-1) registered two singles in the stanza. She struck out five and walked one in the contest and left the bases loaded in the sixth for the 12th time this season.
Notre Dame had five doubles and stole two bases. Rutgers committed three errors behind relief pitcher Noelle Sisco, who went 0.1 innings and gave up three unearned runs on three hits. Nicole Lindley (5-9) threw the first 5.1 innings and was shaken for nine hits and five earned runs.
Heather Johnson had four RBI on three hits and Brianna Jorgensborg broke out for two runs, two hits and a pair of RBI.
The six-run sixth inning aided a 2-0 Irish advantage heading into the inning. The Irish batted through the lineup and at one point recorded six straight hits. Christine Lux, Kristina Wright, Jorgensborg and Johnson each doubled in the inning.
Jorgensborg and Alexa Maldonado had consecutive singles in the third before Fleury drew her team-high 16th walk of the season. Johnson singled up the middle to score a pair of runs.
Johnson’s second hit of the game was a long fifth-inning single off the right-center wall.
Katie Fleury doubled in the first inning for Notre Dame.
–ND–