Box Score BOCA RATON, Fla. – The Northern Illinois University softball team closed out the Florida Atlantic University "First-Pitch" Classic with a 5-1 loss to Bethune-Cookman on Sunday.
 
The Huskies (0-5) score nine runs in the five games in tournament play.   Six of the runs came in the first three innings in all of those games. 
 
"We need to take what we learned this weekend and move forward," said NIU head softball coach Christina Sutcliffe.
 
The Wildcats got on the board first with a run in the bottom of the second inning on a RBI single with the bases loaded and two outs.    
 
The Huskies came back in the top of the third with their own two-out rally. Senior Bekah Harnish (Maple Park, Ill./Burlington Central) got it started with a two-out single up the middle.  Senior Alaynie Woollard (New Castle, Ind./New Castle) followed, roping a triple into right field and scoring Harnish from first to tie the game, 1-1.
 
Unfortunately for NIU, the rest of the game was all Wildcats. Bethune-Cookman scored a run in the bottom of the third and put up a three spot in the bottom of the fifth.
 
"We will work hard this week individually and collectively as one unit and bounce back," said Sutcliffe. "This team is talented, and I have faith in them." 
 
The Huskies continue their road trip on Friday, Feb. 16, at the College of Charleston "Cougar Classic" in Charleston, S.C. First pitch for NIU's first game of the season begins on Friday at 10:15 a.m. CT when the Huskies take on the Longwood Lancers. 
 
–NIU–