DES MOINES, Iowa – Nicole Newman (Madison, Wis.) threw the fourth no-hitter in Missouri Valley Conference Tournament history to help lead the Drake University softball team to a 2-0 win over Valparaiso Friday night at Buel Field.
Top-seeded Drake (42-10) advances to Saturday's title game at 1 p.m. where it will play the winner of Friday's other semifinal matchup between No. 2 Missouri State and No. 3 Southern Illinois.
It is the third no-hitter for Newman, who struck out 15 batters, this season and second against Valparaiso (27-24) this year. With the win, she improved to 20-3 on the season and just missed her first-ever perfect game by allowing two walks.