OXFORD, Ohio. – The Northern Illinois University softball team dismantled Miami with scores of 7-6 and 7-2 in its doubleheader Sunday afternoon, sealing the series sweep over the reigning Mid-American Conference champions.
The victories helped NIU head coach
Christina Sutcliffe surpass 300 career wins; she's the longest-tenured active mentor in the MAC.
"I think we did a really good job of putting the pressure on all day," said Sutcliffe. "All three of our pitchers did a great job of keeping us in it and that gave us a chance to win,"
Game One | NIU 7, Miami 6
After an action-packed second inning, NIU (13-12, 4-1 MAC) held a 4-2 lead to start things off.
Courtney James (Fishers, Ind./Fishers) scored the Huskies' first run after a pair of Miami errors. Four at-bats later and with a full count,
Caitlyn Shumaker (Bellefontaine, Ohio/Bellefontaine) logged a sac fly, scoring
Kiley Conner (St. John, Ind./Lake Central) to give NIU its second run.
Fiona Crane (Evergreen Park, Ill./Mother McAuley) posted a groundout RBI, scoring
Ellis Erickson (Lutz, Fla./Freedom) while
Kelly Walinski (Worth, Ill./Marist) brought home
Ally Rodriguez (Romeoville, Ill./Plainfield East) with a single to right center to conclude the Huskies' flurry of runs in the second.
Miami (14-12, 2-4 MAC) cut its deficit in half with a two RBI single in the home half of the second.
Claire Norred (Tipton, Ind./Tipton) (3-1) kept the RedHawks at bay until the fourth frame when Miami came within one run (4-3) after an RBI single to right field.
With
Lily Cassell (LaGrange, Ohio/Keystone) in the circle to relieve Norred in the bottom of the fifth, Miami tied the ballgame 4-4 with an RBI single.
The Huskies kept their cool though. In the top of the sixth, James got aboard with a single to right field on a 1-2 count and Conner reached on an error before Erickson blasted a double to left center, scoring the two runners.
With the 6-4 lead, Miami scored in the bottom half of the sixth thanks to a passed ball, but Walinski sent a solo bomb over the left field fence in the top of the seventh, giving NIU a 7-5 lead and a critical insurance run.
Pitcher
Danielle Stewart (Frankfort, Ill./Lincoln-Way East) came in to close the game. The RedHawks recorded a one-run homer on the freshman, but Stewart shook it off with ease and sat down the ensuing two batters. The Huskies sealed the 7-6 victory, and the series win, after the final out was recorded via a pop out to Walinski at shortstop.
"We really had to punch back in game one. We were ahead, but they came back. It goes back to our practices and work ethic. They compete every single day in practice and try to push each other. They know that if one of them is not getting it done, somebody else on our team is going to have their back and get it done for us. We've got 24 women that can get the job done on any given day. It helps your confidence to know that you're never out of any game or any situation,"
Notes
- NIU scored seven runs off seven hits and had one error
- Miami scored six runs off 10 hits and had four errors
- Walinski led at the dish going 3-4 with two RBI
- Erickson was close behind going 2-3 and two RBI as well
- Mallinder and James garnered NIU's other two hits
- Norred improved her record to 3-1 and fanned two RedHawks
- Stewart logged her second save and struck out two batters in the sole inning she pitched
Game Two | NIU 7, Miami 1
Two-way player Stewart put on a pitching clinic in the circle while the Huskies' offense was equally as impressive in the series closer.
NIU wasted no time in scoring two runs in the first inning of action.
Cara Cruthers (Bartlett, Ill./South Elgin) knocked an RBI single which scored Crane. Then, Mallinder delivered another RBI single, scoring Walinski to put the Huskies up 2-0.
The runs continued in the second frame with Stewart scoring Conner after her RBI single to left field. Walinski then inflated the lead to 4-0 with yet another RBI single which scored Shumaker who got aboard via fielder's choice.
Later in the third inning, the Huskies poured on three more runs thanks to Conner's RBI single, a Miami error, and Shumaker's groundout RBI.
The RedHawks attempted to retaliate in the fifth and seventh innings as the home team scored a run in each, but Stewart shut the door on the futile comeback after fanning the final out, ending the game 7-2, NIU.
"I think we made some key plays when we knew we had to get off the field. Fiona [Crane] made a huge catch in right field that would've scored two runs had she not caught it. Cara [Cruthers] had a double play in one inning that could have gotten out of hand. So, I think we were able to make those plays when we really needed,"
Notes
- The Huskies scored seven runs off 10 hits and had three errors
- Miami scored two runs off three hits and had two errors
- Stewart is now 5-5 in the circle after sitting down seven RedHawks, tying her career-high
- In the second inning, Stewart retired the side, striking out three-straight batters in order
- The last time a Huskie struck out the side was Alex Frenz vs. Ball State (4/2/19)
- Seven of the 11 Huskies that made plate appearances recorded at least one hit
- Walinski, Conner, and Stewart were each 2-3 and had one RBI
- Shumaker, Crane, Cruthers, and Mallinder were the other Huskies to log a hit
Up Next
NIU will stay on the road and look to keep its momentum rolling as the team will take on Ball State (14-12, 4-1 MAC) in a three-game series. A doubleheader is slated for Tuesday (March 28) with game times set for noon/2 p.m. CT. The series closer is locked for Wednesday (March 29) at noon CT.
"We can celebrate this for a couple hours, and then once it hits tonight, we'll start concentrating on Ball State what we're going to do for that plan and how we'll attack them. We're not going to surprise anybody after this weekend, so I think we just have got to stick to our plan. Ball State had a good weekend as well. We'll just take it one pitch and a time and compete until the end."
