NKU’s Rachele Vogelpohl

EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. - Rachele Vogelpohl moved closer to the Northern Kentucky University record for career home runs on Friday, and the Norse senior shortstop also helped her team advance to the winner’s bracket final of the NCAA Division II Great Lakes Region Tournament.

Vogelpohl smashed a three-run homer in the first inning as NKU rolled past Grand Valley State, 10-0, in five innings. The Norse improved to 40-19 and will meet Southern Indiana at 3:30 p.m. Saturday in the winner’s bracket final.

The NKU/Southern Indiana winner advances to the championship round and will need just one victory to capture the Great Lakes Region title.

On Friday, NKU took a 1-0 lead in the first inning when pitcher Amanda Smith lined a single up the middle to drive in Ricki Rothbauer. Vogelpohl followed by hammering a 2-2 delivery from Grand Valley State pitcher Lori Andjelich over the fence in left-center field to give the Norse a 4-0 advantage.

It was the fifth home run of the season for Vogelpohl, a graduate of Holy Cross High School. She now has 12 career homers, which is one shy of tying Krista Eldridge’s NKU record of 13.

NKU scored three times in the second inning off run-scoring hits from Heather Cotner, Vogelpohl and Shatona Campbell. Cotner’s double off the top of the fence in right-center field plated Rothbauer for a 5-0 lead. Vogelpohl and Campbell followed with RBI singles to make it 7-0.

Sarah King increased the Norse lead to 9-0 in the third inning with a two-run single, and NKU capped its offensive show in the fifth on another RBI single by Smith to make it 10-0.

Smith scattered six hits and improved to 24-10 this season. The freshman escaped a bases-loaded jam in the fourth inning when Kara Lorenz made a spectacular diving catch of a sinking liner off the bat of Lisa Preuss.

Rothbauer went 2-for-2 and scored four times for NKU, which is the No. 5 seed in the Great Lakes Region field. The Norse collected 14 hits and did not commit an error.

NKU met Grand Valley State during the 2004 NCAA Division II Great Lakes Region Tournament at Highland Heights, Ky., and the Norse won that game by a 4-0 score. That win also sent NKU to the NCAA Division II World Series.

Grand Valley State (35-20) will meet Gannon in an elimination game Saturday. The eighth-seeded Lakers upset top-seeded Southern Illinois at Edwardsville during Thursday’s first round.

NKU is the two-time defending champion of the Great Lakes Region.

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