Valpo junior pitcher Jenna Edwards (Winchester, Ky./George Rogers Clark [Chattanooga State C.C.]) threw a gem in the nightcap against defending MVC champion Drake Saturday at the Valpo Softball Complex, but in the end, a single run by the Bulldogs in the seventh inning was the decisive tally as Valpo fell, 1-0. Drake won the opener Saturday as well, 10-0, as Bulldog senior Nicole Newman threw a perfect game in the opener before finishing out a combined no-hitter in the day’s second game.

How It Happened – Game One

• Newman retired all 15 Valpo batters she faced in the opener for her second perfect game in as many weekends.
• Drake scored two runs in the first, and added two in the second, four in the third and two in the fourth to complete the scoring.

How It Happened – Game Two

• Edwards was stellar through the first six innings, facing the minimum three batters in three of those frames, including a second inning which saw freshman Taylor Herschbach (Lockport, Ill./Lockport Township) complete a highlight reel double play, leaping to snag a line drive and then firing to first to complete the twin killing.
• Drake got a runner to second base in the first, fourth and sixth innings. But Edwards stranded that runner there all three times, recording strikeouts in the first and fourth frames and then inducing a pop-up in the sixth to keep the Bulldogs off the board.
• Drake pitcher Nicole Timmons was strong as well, as a one-out walk by Hannah Dybalski (Lebanon, Ind./Lebanon) in the second and a two-out hit by pitch for Ashley Barker (Coal Valley, Ill./Moline) were the only Valpo baserunners through five innings.
• Valpo’s best scoring opportunity came in the sixth, as senior Carly Trepanier (Manteno, Ill./Manteno) worked a full-count walk with one out. Two batters later, senior Jaymee Lawton (Goodyear, Ariz./Desert Edge [Utah Valley]) drew a full-count walk of her own to put two on with two outs. But Drake went to Newman out of the bullpen, who recorded a strikeout to send the game to the seventh inning scoreless.
• Drake put two runners into scoring position with nobody out in the seventh on a leadoff walk and a double that just dropped in down the right-field line. Edwards recorded a big strikeout for the first out, but Drake’s Abby Buie sent the first pitch of her at-bat into center field, just deep enough for a sacrifice fly to account for the game’s lone run.

Inside the Games

• Saturday’s doubleheader marked Drake’s first visit to Valpo since 1990.
• Drake is Valpo’s fourth straight MVC opponent to open conference play which currently ranks among the top-100 in the nation in RPI. The Bulldogs were ranked 27th in last Monday’s RPI release.
• Edwards tossed a three-hitter in the nightcap, surrendering just the lone run while striking out seven Drake hitters. Over her last six appearances, Edwards has a 1.52 ERA in 23 innings of work and has struck out 25 batters.

Next Up

Valpo (12-16, 2-8 MVC) is scheduled to close out the series with the Bulldogs with an 11 a.m. game on Sunday at the Valpo Softball Complex.