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DETROIT -- Behind a strong pitching performance and clutch hitting Friday, the Wayne State University softball team earned a 3-0 victory in its NCAA Midwest Regional opener against Ashland University at the WSU Softball Stadium. With the win, Wayne State (42-9) earned its 20th NCAA victory under head coach Gary Bryce and its first since 2010.

WSU also posted its 17th straight victory of the season and improved to 11-0 at home this year. Wayne State, the No. 2 seed in the regional tournament, advances to play Grand Valley State University in the first game Saturday at 11 a.m. The sixth-seeded Lakers (30-12) defeated No. 3 seed University of Indianapolis in the second game Friday, 8-0.

Both teams battled the weather Friday with two weather delays totaling two hours that forced the game to be halted for almost an hour each time. The first rain and lightning delay, which last one hour and nine minutes, came just after Ashland leadoff hitter Cayla Seidler singled to left field to open the game.

Following the first rain delay, Wayne State junior pitcher Briana Lee (Canton, Mich. / Salem) got three straight outs in the top of the first, stranding Seidler on third base. In the bottom of the first, WSU wasted little time crossing the plate.

Freshman Emily Cava (Brampton, Ont. / Cardinal Leger S.S.) led the bottom of the first off with a walk and senior Logan White (Brantford, Ont. / Johnson C.V.I.) followed with a double down the left field line, moving Cava to third base. Redshirt freshman Lyndsay Butler (Cambridge, Ont. / Centennial C.V.I.) worked a full count and then hit a sacrifice fly deep enough to left field to score Cava from third and give WSU a 1-0 lead.

After allowing the leadoff single to Seidler to start the contest prior to the rain delay, Lee retired 15 of the next 17 batters. She allowed just two hits through the first five innings of the game, striking out five batters.

In the bottom of the fifth inning, Wayne State added another run. Lee helped her own cause with a leadoff walk. With sophomore Catherine Rayos (Warren, Mich.) pinch running for Lee, sophomore Gabby Williams (South Lyon, Mich. / South Lyon) sacrificed Rayos to second base. Cava then doubled to right center, just out of the reach of Ashland's Shelbie Prince, scoring Rayos and providing Wayne State with a 2-0 advantage.

Ashland singled with one out in the top of the sixth inning and with two outs another weather system forced the game to again be delayed, this time for 51 minutes. Following the delay, Lee walked Ashland's Kayla Prokopakis to give the Eagles two runners on base with two outs. Butler came in to pitch for Lee and struck out the final batter in the top of the sixth to preserve the lead.

Wayne State added an insurance run in the bottom of the sixth. After redshirt senior Julie Ingratta (Markham, Ont. / St. Thomas of Villanova College) doubled off the wall in left field to open the inning, sophomore Jade McGarr (Guelph, Ont. / St. James Catholic) moved her to third with a sacrifice bunt. Senior Amanda Burnard (Canton, Mich. / Plymouth) followed with an RBI single to score Ingratta, increasing the Wayne State lead to 3-0.

The Eagles led off the seventh inning with a base hit but Butler retired the next three batters, two of them on strikeouts, to clinch the Warrior victory.

Lee earned the win on the mound, improving to 20-2 on the season. Butler earned her fifth save of the year. The shutout was Wayne State's 24th this season.