It could be the defining inning of Northwestern’s season.
Having already blown two leads heading into the eighth inning of Sunday’s nightcap against Iowa in Iowa City, the Wildcats were on the verge of a devastating collapse and a third consecutive series split.
Catcher Chad Noble opened the inning with a line drive single to left field and advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt by shortstop Tommy Finn. After Jake Owens walked, center fielder Aaron Newman ran out an infield single to load the bases for hot-hitting first baseman Jake Goebbert.
Having seen Hawkeyes relief pitcher Steve Turnbull the previous game, the sophomore knew what to expect.
“I remembered he liked to open hitters with consecutive curveballs,” Goebbert said. “So after the first curve I got set for another one and hit it into center.”
Goebbert’s single brought home Noble and Owens to give the Cats an 8-6 lead, which they would never relinquish in a 9-6 win.
“I think that inning was a microcosm of the entire weekend,” Goebbert said. “Everyone contributed to get the bases loaded and we made hits when we needed to. It was a great team effort.”
The victory pushed NU’s conference record to .500 for the first time since 2006 and vaulted the Cats (13-17, 8-8 Big Ten) to fifth in the Big Ten standings.
But first baseman Chris Lashmet said the team’s final victory goes beyond standings and statistics.
“You do not understand how big that last win was,” Lashmet said. “It was a huge confidence builder.”
Still, the weekend did not always look like it would turn out so well.
The Cats opened the weekend strong after Friday’s contest was postponed due to rain.
NU jumped on Iowa early, scoring two runs in the top of the first on RBIs by Goebbert and Lashmet. But Iowa countered in the bottom of the inning, putting up three runs on last week’s co-Big Ten Pitcher of the Week, Joe Muraski.
The game stayed close until the top of the seventh. The Cats broke the game open with six runs on just three hits, highlighted by a lead-off home run by Owens.
After freshman reliever Matt Gailey gave up two runs in the bottom of the seventh, Matt Havey came in and pitched two scoreless innings to solidify NU’s 13-6 victory.
Yet, as has been the Cats’ problem all season, they failed to carry their early momentum into the nightcap.
Iowa came out swinging against starter Bo Schultz, scoring five runs in three innings to drive Schultz from the mound.
Those five runs would be all Iowa needed as NU’s bats fell silent. The Cats put up just three runs on six hits, eventually falling to the Hawkeyes 8-3.
The Cats refused to go away thanks to a huge third game from Lashmet.
The freshman set a career high with five RBIs, including a huge three-run home run in the top of the fifth to pace NU to a 13-6 victory.
“It’s amazing when everything’s going your way,” said Lashmet, who went 6-for-13 on the weekend with eight RBIs. “You really cherish those moments.”
Things looked good early for the Cats in Sunday’s nightcap. Led by two RBIs by right fielder Nate Roberts, NU jumped out to an early 5-1 lead before Iowa began chipping away.
The Hawkeyes tied it up with two runs in the fourth and sixth. The teams traded seventh-inning runs, setting up the dramatic eighth inning and the crucial victory.
“We needed that game,” said reliever Jonathan Purcell, who earned a tough two-inning save. “It feels really good.”
The weekend also saw some impressive individual performances for some of NU’s key players. In addition to his late-game heroics, Goebbert went a scorching 8-for-13 with seven RBIs, putting him sixth in the Big Ten with 36 and pushing his season average to .394.
Roberts also continued his strong play, going 8-for-14 and driving in six runs, including three in Sunday night’s thriller.
Yet for all the home runs and RBIs, coach Paul Stevens was more impressed by the Cats’ strong team play.
“I could pinpoint any number of individual performances,” he said. “Our success was about working hard as a team all week and just never giving up. This weekend was extremely gratifying.”
With four weekends left before the Big Ten tournament, the Cats still have a lot of baseball left to play. But for Stevens, this weekend was huge in boosting NU’s confidence for the remainder of the season.
“We know we can compete with the guys in the Big Ten,” he said. “Our performance definitely creates a good feeling as we move forward.”
