Final Stats

CLEARWATER, Fla. - The Northern Illinois University softball team opened the USF Michelle Smith Spring Break Tournament Friday with a doubleheader split, falling to Purdue before defeating Yale.

The Huskies got into an early hole against Purdue en route to a 7-3 loss, then shuttered Yale's offense under the lights in a 2-0 win.

Game One: Home Runs Push Purdue Past NIU, 7-3

An early deficit and two home runs proved to be took much for the Huskies in the first game, as they suffered a 7-3 defeat against Purdue.

NIU put together a late rally with runs in the fourth and sixth innings, but a pair of three-run homers - one in the third and one in the fifth - gave the Boilermakers all they would need.

"I'm not sure our players realized we were a hit or two from tying that game up, but they fought and they got us in a position where we could be in that situation of tying it up," said NIU Head Coach Christina Sutcliffe. "That's all we can ask for from that situation early in the game. We just fight through it and, like I said before, give us a chance to win in the seventh."

Pitchers Jessica Sturm (Wichita, Kan./Goddard) and Lilly Fecho traded scoreless innings to open the contest, as the pair of all-conference hurlers combined for four strikeouts in the first two frames. However, Purdue got on the board in the third with Ashley Burkhardt's three-run roundtripper. The Boilermakers started with a bunt single by Maya Hughes, while a double from Alyssa Koorsen put two runners in scoring position to set up Burkhardt's home run.

NIU got one run back in the bottom of the fourth. Bryanna Phelan (Coal City, Ill./Coal City) reached base on an error to lead off the inning, then advanced to second on Bekah Harnish's (Maple Park, Ill./Burlington Central) sacrifice bunt. Kayti Grable (Santee, Calif./Santana) followed with a single into right field to bring home Phelan for the Huskies' first run of the game.

Yet, Purdue added to its lead in the ensuing half inning. Burkhardt led off the inning with a double, while Katie Harrison brought her home with a single. NIU lifted Sturm for Tara Thacker (Uniontown, Ohio/North Canton Hoover) following a walk, but Paris Andrew launched a three-run shot over the right field fence to push the score to 7-1. Thacker, though, got out of the stanza without any further damage by forcing a double play and a groundout.

The Huskies chipped away at that deficit with two runs in the sixth. Allyson Hecht (Huntington Beach, Calif./Edison) and Phelan opened with a pair of singles and Harnish drew a walk to load the bases for Grable. The sophomore power hitter came through in an unconventional way, getting hit by a pitch to force in Hecht.

Emily Naegele (Oak Forest, Ill./Oak Forest) followed by drawing a walk to plate Phelan. With the bases full and no outs, NIU was unable to bring in another run, as Purdue forced two pop outs and a strikeout to hold the Huskies.

In the seventh, Phelan got a two-out single to keep the comeback hopes alive, but that's all the Huskies could muster.

Game Two: Huskies Grind Out 2-0 Win over Yale

NIU closed out the day with an impressive defensive performance, shutting out Yale, 2-0.

NIU pitchers Keegan Hayes (Naperville, Ill./Naperville Central) and Jessica Sturm combined to allow just seven hits, one walk and no runs over seven innings.

"Between Keegan and Jess, they did a good job," Sutcliffe said. "Knowing the middle of the lineup is going to hit, what are you going to do around those players? They did a good job of getting those players out and the middle of the lineup didn't hurt us when they came up."

Outside of allowing two hits in the second, Hayes dominated the Bulldogs' lineup. The freshman retired the side in order in the first inning, then sat down nine-straight batters in the third, fourth and fifth innings before her day was over.

Meanwhile, Sturm kept Yale off the board to preserve the win. In the sixth with runners on the corners and one out, the senior forced a pair of pop ups to end the threat and keep the Huskies in front. Sturm faced a similar situation in the seventh with two outs. Yet, she and the NIU defense came through again with a lineout to end the game.

While it took some time to get going, the Huskies' bats found their groove in the fourth. Bekah Harnish led off with a single, then Kayti Grable clobbered a double into the right field gap to bring home Harnish and give NIU a 1-0 lead. Three batters later, Alaynie Woollard (New Castle, Ind./New Castle) added an insurance run with a two-out single to plate Grable for a 2-0 lead the Huskies never relinquished.

In the fifth, Yale hurler Lindsay Efflandt kept the Huskies from adding to the lead. NIU loaded the bases with no outs, but two strikeouts and a pop up ended NIU's chances at blowing open the contest.

NIU gets back to the field for two more games tomorrow. The Huskies start the day at 10:15 a.m. CT against Canisius and finish with a 12:45 p.m. CT clash with Quinnipiac.