Coming into Tuesday’s matchup against Northern Illinois, Northwestern had put up 32 runs in its last three games. And even though the Huskies kept them off the board for the first three innings, the 'Cats knew that their offense would eventually come alive.
Behind home runs from sophomores Amy Letourneau and Andrea DiPrima, the Wildcats (22-16, 6-5 Big Ten) charged past Northern Illinois (13-26) at Sharon J. Drysdale Field to win 11-9. Letourneau also stepped to the mound and delivered Northwestern's first save of the season.
Husky left fielder Ashley Kopp opened the scoring in the second inning with a solo home run to left field off of freshman pitcher Kristen Wood. The 'Cats had a tough time responding, as Northern Illinois pitcher Jessica Sturm held them to one hit in the first three innings. But the streaky Wildcat offense finally hit its stride in the fourth, which came as no surprise to head coach Kate Drohan.
“I thought we were a little anxious early in the game,” Drohan said. “We made that adjustment, and then this team is such a team of momentum, and I love it when hitting is contagious like that.”
Junior Marisa Bast started the onslaught by ripping one to the left field wall that was bobbled by the Huskies’ Bryanna Phelan, allowing Bast to pick up the double. Next up was Letourneau, who crushed a high-arcing two-run homer, her third of the week. The hitting didn’t slow down, and an error and a sacrifice fly allowed two more runs to score, increasing the lead to 4-1.
Not to be outdone, Northern Illinois came right back and put in three runs before senior Meghan Lamberth replaced Wood on the mound. It was a slow start for her, as she let in three runs as well before getting out of the inning.
Down 7-4, the 'Cats stormed back once again. They loaded the bases on an error, a walk and a hit-by-pitch, and then sophomore Anna Edwards sent one run in with a sacrifice fly. DiPrima then stepped up and cranked a three-run shot to left field to take the 8-7 lead.
The Huskies made a pitching change, but Northwestern didn’t slow down. Senior Kristin Scharkey and junior Mari Majam hit consecutive doubles to send in three more runs, and the seven-run inning made it 11-7.
“I think it’s because we have a lot of good hitters in a row. We have great production throughout our lineup,” Drohan said. “So to see Mari and Scharkey getting on base as consistently as they are ... I’ve never had leadoffs and a two-batter with the RBI numbers that they have.”
Drohan sent in Letourneau to close it out, and the ace did just that, allowing no hits in her 1.2 innings. She secured the save for herself, the win for Lamberth and the victory for Northwestern.
It was the first save from any Northwestern pitcher this year, but Letourneau was completely comfortable being called upon late in the game.
“It’s just pitching. It’s the same thing as if I start or I come in when we’re ahead or behind. It doesn’t matter.
“I think that we need to shape up our defense and our pitching, but I don’t think that we have a problem offensively right now. I think we need to heavily rely on our offense and know that we can keep scoring no matter how many runs we give up.”
The Wildcats head to Penn State to take on the Nittany Lions in a three-game series beginning Friday.