April 18, 2003
RECORD TO DATE:
Northern Illinois now 17-16 (7-4 MAC), Marshall now 35-12 (16-4 MAC)
NEXT HUSKIE ACTION: Wednesday, Apr. 19 / NIU vs. Marshall University
(SG) / DeKalb, IL / 1:00 p.m.
HUSKIES AND HERD
SEE A LITTLE BIT OF EVERYTHING DURING MID-AMERICAN CONFERENCE DOUBLEHEADER
SPLIT
DEKALB, IL---Jekyll and Hyde showed their faces again Friday (Apr. 18)
as the Northern Illinois University softball team used an all-around great
effort to take a 3-1 victory from Marshall University in game one of a
doubleheader before falling 5-3 in a second game marked by seven combined
errors between the two squads at NIU's Mary M. Bell Field.
Playing their first home game since a March 30 twinbill with Western Michigan
University---and only their third and fourth overall---the Huskies move
to 17-16 overall with a 7-4 mark in Mid-American Conference play. With
the split, NIU has now posted a 1-1 mark in each of their last three MAC
doubleheaders. The Thundering Herd---currently leading the MAC East---post
a 35-12 record that includes a 16-4 league slate.
For the fourth time in its last six games NIU jumped out and scored a
run right away in the first inning. Kelly Redican (Lynwood / Chicago Heights
Marian Catholic) reached on a fielder's choice that forced Lisa Mattke
(Plymouth, IN) at second base after Mattke drew her MAC-leading 23rd walk
of the season. Shelby Bernard (Cedar Falls, IA) laced a single through
the left side before freshman Kelly Drozd (Lockport) delivered a clutch
two-out single up the middle to score Redican and give the Huskies a 1-0
lead.
Marshall struck back with a run in the top of third. Sierra Davenport
beat out a groundball to third base, moved to second base on an Amanda
Williams groundout, and scored when MAC runs batted in leader De'Shaun
Drake singled up the middle to tie the game.
In the bottom of the fourth, Northern Illinois broke the deadlock. Mattke
drew another walk and took second on Redican's groundout to third. Bernard
continued her hot hitting, driving another ball into the same spot in
left centerfield to bring home Mattke and make it 2-1 game in favor of
the Huskies.
NIU added an insurance run in the bottom of the sixth. Therese Harper
(Glenwood / Homewood-Flossmoor) led off with a bloop single into centerfield
and moved to second on a passed ball. After advancing to third on a Mattke
groundout, Harper took advantage of Randi Nielson's (20-4) wildness again,
scoring on a wild pitch to make it 3-1 NIU.
"Finally, we played a good, complete game," stated NIU head
coach Donna Martin. "We hit, we pitched, we played good defense.
(Marshall) is a very aggressive club, and if you don't come out and get
on top early, its difficult to come back."
No insurance was needed for Kathy Dearborn (Geneseo / Darnall) as the
sophomore moved to 7-7 on the season after picking up the victory. For
the third straight outing, the Huskie hurler looked extremely sharp allowing
just four hits and the single run during her complete-game effort while
striking out four.
At the plate, NIU finally seemed to come out of its shell, racking up
10 hits and walking seven times. Bernard led the way with a perfect 4-for-4
day that included the pair of doubles and the only Huskie run batted in.
Drozd went 3-for-4 while Mattke posted a 1-for-2 day with two walks. Dearborn
walked three times in four plate appearances.
Game two was a completely different story as Northern Illinois fell behind
early due to a combination of timely Marshall hitting and Huskie fielding
miscues. After consecutive one-out MU singles, pitcher Amy Krahula (Woodridge
/ Downers Grove South) fielded a Sara Spenia sacrifice bunt cleanly but
sailed her throw into right field for the second time---the junior committed
an identical error in the top of the first---allowing a run to score.
Two more singles and a walk resulted in three more runs for the Herd to
make it 4-0.
"Amy will be the first to tell you that those are plays she should
make," Martin noted. "But, she didn't let it affect her pitching.
Instead, we kept our composure, made some adjustments and put ourselves
in a position to still win the game."
Things got a little dicey in the bottom of the fourth when NIU put its
first tally on the board. Paige Shemoski (Palos Park / Palos Hills Stagg)
ripped a two-out double into right-center and Drozd followed that up with
a rope of her own into left. De'Shaun Drake came up throwing to get Shemoski
at third, but the throw sailed past third base and towards the NIU dugout.
As the ball was about to carom off the fence, the gate to the Huskie dugout
swung open and ball trickled out of play. Shemoski was awarded home and
Drozd took third, much to the chagrin of MU head coach Shonda Stanton.
The Herd played the rest of the game under protest.
As if the game wasn't strange enough at that point, Northern Illinois
scored two runs without a hit in the bottom of the fifth to climb back
into the contest. Mishandled sacrifice bunts proved to be the killer again,
as winning pitcher Sarah Chamberlain (6-5) pulled second baseman Courtney
Kacenga off the bag at first with her throw on two straight attempts.
Redican then bounced a slow grounder to shortstop with the bases loaded
that Jessica Williams mishandled to bring home the first run of the inning.
Bernard also rolled a groundball---this one to second base---that was
actually fielded cleanly but still brought home a run and made it a 4-3
ballgame.
"With the exception of that one bad inning, I think we played them
pretty even," the Huskie field boss admitted. "We did what we
had to do to get back into the game, but we didn't take advantage of some
opportunities to make that last run."
Marshall extended the lead back to two in the top of the seventh with
a valuable insurance run. Amanda Williams launched a two-out triple off
the fence in centerfield off relief pitcher Paige Granath (Machesney Park
/ Harlem) to start the rally and scored when Allison Webb rifled a ball
out into left field to put MU's fifth run of the game on the board.
Krahula (9-6) took the loss for the Huskies despite suffering through
just the one bad inning. The junior allowed six hits and three earned
runs in addition to striking out four and walking two. NIU mustered just
three hits off MU starter Chamberlain while not plating a single earned
run. Shemoski notched a 1-for-2 day with a run scored an a walk. Drozd
and Del Toro each collected a hit as part of 1-for-3 efforts. Mattke was
held hitless for the first time in seven games as she went 0-for-4.
The rubber match of this already fantastic series will take place Saturday
(Apr. 19) at NIU's Mary M. Bell Field. Both teams will take to the field
at 1:00 p.m. for pitch number one.
--Copy by Brian Kedzior -30-
