Championship Central
VILLANOVA, PA – Butler, Creighton, and Providence collected victories on the first day of the 2025 BIG EAST Softball Championship presented by Jeep. The double-elimination tournament will run until Saturday, May 10 at the Villanova Softball Complex.
Thursday’s games will stream on the BIG EAST Digital Network on FloSports presented by InvescoQQQ. Tickets can be purchased, HERE.
#4 Creighton 6, #5 Butler 3 | Box Score | Photo Gallery
Fourth-seeded Creighton defeated No. 5 Butler, 6-3, in the Championship opener. The Bluejays struck early when Sydra Seville scored on an RBI double from Lily West in the bottom of the first inning. West made her way home moments later on an RBI single from Sydney Potter that broke the Bluejays’ single-season RBI record (59). The Bulldogs countered in the top of the second courtesy of a sac-fly to score Makena Alexander. Creighton, however, answered at the bottom of the inning when Ashten Pierson’s RBI single sent Erika Perez across the plate.
Creighton extended its lead with a pair of runs in the fourth from Ella Dalton (RBI, Avery Banard) and Reese Ramos (RBI, Sydra Seville). The ‘Jays added another tally in the sixth behind an RBI double from Perez to score Dalton. Butler chipped away at Creighton’s lead in the sixth inning with runs from Leigh Vande Hei (RBI, Hailey Conger) and Cate Lehner (RBI, Ella White), but was unable to overcome the deficit.
Creighton’s Seville registered a game-high three hits. Butler was paced by Ella White and Makena Alexander with two hits apiece. The Bluejays outhit the Bulldogs 9-8.
Kenzie Schopfer earned the win, tossing all seven innings and striking out three. Katie Petran went the distance for the Bulldogs, logging one strikeout.
The Bluejays will meet top-seeded St. John’s tomorrow at 12:00 p.m. ET.
#3 Villanova 9, #6 Providence 10 (8) | Box Score | Photo Gallery
Sixth-seeded Providence mounted an epic late-game comeback to upset No. 3 Villanova, 10-9 (8), in extra innings to capture the Friars’ first BIG EAST tournament victory since 1995.
Villanova’s Maranda Runco registered the first tally of the game, launching her 19th homerun of the year in the first inning to set a Villanova single-season record. Grace Reed and Ava Mahnken added another two runs in the second frame. Providence countered in the third inning with a two-run homer off the bat of Cameron Dunn.
The Wildcats tacked on four runs in the third inning, beginning with a double from Madison Ostrowski to score Reed and Brooklyn Ostrowski. Ava Franz followed, logging a single to right field that sent M. Ostrowski and Maddie Burrows across the plate. In the fifth inning, Runco launched her second homer of the contest – a two-run blast to give Villanova a 7-2 lead.
Undeterred, the Friars’ bats came alive in the sixth inning. With two outs on the board, Rachael Petraca doubled down the left field line to score Sofia Peterson. In the next at-bat, Hanna Aldrich dished out an RBI double of her own. Elisa Smith followed, sending Aldrich home with an RBI single.
Dunn opened the seventh inning with her second solo homer of the day. Peterson then logged her second run of the day, opening the door for Riley Quirk to score the tying run and force extra innings.
Smith scored the winning run in the top of the eighth courtesy of a sac fly off the bat of Peterson.
Alyssa Twomey, Alannah Hopkins, and Jessica Walter shared time in the circle for Providence.
Walter earned the win, tossing 4.1 innings and striking out seven. Kat Gallant and Kelsey White pitched for Villanova with Gallant hurling seven of the contest’s eight innings.
The Friars held a 14-13 overall advantage in hits, out dueling the Wildcats 8-0 in the final three frames. Providence will face No. 2 UConn tomorrow at 3 p.m. ET.
#3 Villanova 10, #5 Butler 13 | Box Score | Photo Gallery
Butler outlasted Villanova, 13-10, in an elimination game barnburner to advance to Thursday’s second elimination matchup at 6:00 p.m. ET. The contest's 23 combined runs are a BIG EAST Championship record.
The Bulldogs will face the lower seeded loser of tomorrow’s first two contests.
Villanova opened scoring with four runs in the first inning beginning with an RBI single from Kelsey White. Teammate Brooklyn Ostrowski followed with a three-run homer to center field. Butler countered in the bottom of the inning with a two-run single off the bat of Ella White to score Hailey Conger and Cate Lehner.
The Wildcats answered in the third inning behind a sac fly from B. Ostrowski to score K. White. The Bulldogs were quick to reply with an RBI double from E. White.
Butler took the lead in the fourth inning, logging eight runs on seven hits. Conger contributed a three-run triple, priming the plate for a two-run homer from E. White. Makena Alexander followed with an RBI double to center field. Olivia Moxley and Kieli Ryan tacked on another two runs with one RBI single apiece.
Villanova launched a counterattack beginning in the fifth inning when B. Ostrowski launched a three-run homer over the left center fence, becoming the second Wildcat of the day with a multi-home run game. At the top of the sixth, Maranda Runco and Elaina Wagner each registered RBI singles.
The Bulldogs, however, fended off the advancing Wildcats with another two runs from Moxley and Sydney Carter to upset the reigning BIG EAST Champions.
Butler outhit Villanova, 17-12. Lehner led the night with five hits, a BIG EAST Tournament record,while E. White contributed a team-best five RBI. Ryan Dyler earned the win in the circle, tossing 4.2 innings and striking out two. Teammate Katie Petran tossed 2.1 innings and logged five strikeouts.
Villanova’s B. Ostrowski registered a game-best 7 RBI. Lexi Kobryn and Kat Gallant shared pitching responsibilities, combining for three strikeouts.