Box Score
MIAMI (Feb. 9, 2014) – In the championship game of the Felsberg Memorial, the FIU softball team (4-1) fell to the DePaul Blue Demons (3-2), 1-0, in eight innings.
For the first time in the tournament, the championship game saw a pitcher's duel, as the game went into extra frames scoreless. Through five innings, FIU held a slight edge in hits, 3-2, while junior
Shelby Graves fanned a batter in each of the first five innings. The Temecula, Calif., native went the distance, striking out five and throwing with 67 percent accuracy.
With a runner on first and one out in the third, FIU ended the Blue Demons' threat when Micah Fitzgerald flied out to sophomore
Dani Mowry in right field, who then doubled up the runner at first as part of a 9-3-2 inning-ending double play. The Panthers would utilize the double play ball again in the fourth when junior
Rebekah Sanchez grabbed the fly out in left and tossed it across the infield to double the runner off at first again. Junior
Krystal Garcia backhanded a ball on the third base line in the top of the sixth to sit DePaul down 1-2-3.
In the home half of the sixth, senior
Bre Kaye drew a 1-out walk and stole second for her third stolen base this season. Freshman
Stephanie Texeira worked the count full and took first after getting hit by the pitch, but the game went into the seventh scoreless.
With one out in the seventh and runners on second and third for DePaul, senior
Rachel Slowik threw out the runner at home on a fielder's choice, preserving a 0-0 tie. Garcia went 5-3 to end the inning, stranding two Blue Demon base runners in scoring position. In the bottom of the seventh, freshman
Gabby Spallone reached first on a third strike throwing error and took second on a throwing error from the first baseman, but that would be all.
DePaul went ahead in the eighth inning off a single to right center. With Garcia on second in the bottom of the frame, DePaul retired the battery.
The Panthers are back in action next weekend, hosting the FIU Classic. Tournament action begins on Friday at 11:00 a.m. with Wisconsin and Georgia Southern. FIU takes the field at 4:00 p.m. against Georgia Southern and then again at 6:30 p.m. against Florida Gulf Coast.
Fans are encouraged to follow the Panthers on Twitter (@FIUSoftball) and become a fan on Facebook (Facebook.com/FIUSoftball) for all the latest FIU Softball news. Follow all of FIU's 18 athletic teams on Google+ (FIU Athletics), Twitter (@FIUAthletics), Facebook (Facebook.com/FIUSports), YouTube (FIUPanthers), and Instagram (FIUathletics)
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About FIU Athletics: FIU Athletics is home to more than 400 student-athletes in 18 different sports, and is a proud member of Conference USA. Athletic events are played in seven different venues on FIU's campuses (Modesto A. Maidique and Biscayne Bay), including FIU Arena and Alfonso Field at FIU Stadium.
About FIU: Florida International University is recognized as a Carnegie engaged university. Its colleges and schools offer more than 180 bachelor's, master's and doctoral programs in fields such as engineering, international relations, architecture, law and medicine. As one of South Florida's anchor institutions, FIU is worlds ahead in its local and global engagement, finding solutions to the most challenging problems of our time. FIU emphasizes research as a major component of its mission and enrolls nearly 48,000 students in two campuses and three centers including FIU Downtown on Brickell and the Miami Beach Urban Studios. More than 140,000 alumni live and work in South Florida. FIU is a member of Conference USA and has 400 student-athletes participating in 18 sports. For more information about FIU, visit http://www.fiu.edu/.
