Final Stats

KISSIMMEE, Fla. - The Northern Illinois University softball team came just feet away from rallying from a three-run deficit Sunday in Kissimmee, Florida, but suffered a 3-2 loss to Southern Illinois.

Kayti Grable (Santee, Calif./Santana) and Bekah Harnish (Maple Park, Ill./Burlington Central) notched RBIs in the sixth and seventh innings, respectively, to get the Huskies (6-9) within one run of the Salukis (4-8-1). Yet, NIU stranded runners on first and second in the top of the seventh to end the game.

"It was another great pitching performance by Jess and Keegan," said NIU Head Coach Christina Sutcliffe. "The more we are in these one-run games, the better we'll be down the stretch. We had a lot of runners on base, but we couldn't get them in when it counted."

From the start, Huskie pitcher Jessica Sturm (Wichita, Kan./Goddard) and Saluki hurler Katie Bertelsen traded scoreless innings. Sturm allowed just a single hit over the first two frames, while Bertelsen limited the NIU lineup to one hit and one walk over the same time.

The Salukis, though, broke the scoreless deadlock in the third when Savannah Fisher led off the inning with a solo home run. SIU added to their lead in the fifth, as Brook Womack's triple scored Fisher and Sydney Jones to put the Salukis at a 3-0 advantage.

Meanwhile, the Huskies came close, but were unable to push any runs across. In the fourth, Sturm and Allyson Hecht both reached base after being hit by pitchers, only to be stranded. Kali Kossakowski (Elgin, Ill./St. Edward) opened the fifth with a walk and stole second later, but couldn't advance further than that.

NIU got on the board in the sixth when Grable lifted a solo shot over the fence to get the Huskies within two. One frame later, Kossakowski came across home plate on Harnish's RBI single. Grable followed with a single of her own, putting runners on first and second with two outs. Yet, the Salukis got out of the inning to take the win.

NIU returns to Winter Haven, Florida, Tuesday for two more games. The day begins against the Saint Peter's Peacocks at 1:30 p.m. CT, then ends with a 3:45 p.m. CT tilt with the Bucknell Bison.