CHICAGO – To go along with Jessica Smith’s pitching, No. 10 Northwestern only needed one inning worth of offense to beat Loyola-Chicago.
Luckily for the Wildcats, they got to play seven. After a four-run first, the Cats (26-8) coasted to a 6-0 victory over the Ramblers (20-16), using the midweek tune-up to test out new things.
The biggest thing tested was Smith. The sophomore got a chance to pitch for an extended time in the circle for the first time this year and pitched a shutout in her first start.
“It felt awesome,” the sophomore hurler said. “I’ve just been waiting for my chance to get a start and show what I can do. It’s great to be back.”
Prior to Thursday’s non-conference appearance, Smith’s broken leg had limited her to two outings. The first was a scoreless inning in an 8-0 victory against Indiana, followed by a tumultuous two-inning performance against Minnesota where she allowed five runs – one earned – en route to NU’s only Big Ten loss this season.
But on Thursday, Smith was dominant. She allowed only one runner to reach third base and only twice faced a three-ball count. A day after junior Lauren Delaney threw 326 pitches in 14 innings, Smith delivered an efficient 71 in seven, including a six-pitch first.
“She came out throwing strikes, throwing hard, and it’s great to get her innings,” senior catcher Erin Dyer said. “She’s getting better every inning she gets.”
While Delaney’s game is frequently based on getting hitters to chase her devastating riseball out of the zone – leading to strikeouts, but also lots of walks – Smith pitches to contact, letting the defense do the work for her. Delaney allowed 22 walks in Wednesday’s doubleheader, while Smith walked just one batter on Thursday. Of the 27 batters Smith faced, 10 put the ball into play on the first pitch.
“I just really was trying to throw my pitches and do my thing,” Smith said. “My slider was working well. I love that pitch.”
Smith made sure NU didn’t need much scoring, but the offense came through anyway. The Cats got on the board with a Michelle Batts fielders-choice bunt with a runner on third. Batts, the designated player, whose game is more power than speed, played small ball with the defense playing back.
After junior infielder Nicole Pauly hit a sacrifice fly, Dyer opted to do the opposite, hitting a home run that careened off an apartment building, looming over the left-field wall.
“It was fun to hit today, ” Dyer said. “Coming off yesterday, we had two really good games offensively, and I think the bats came out again today.”
After Wednesday night’s 4-for-4 performance with seven runs-batted in, freshman Adrienne Monka followed with a 3-for-3 performance, giving her the longest streak of hits in consecutive at-bats in NU history and the 12th longest in NCAA history. Her solo shot in the fifth was her team-leading 13th of the year and her third over the two-day stretch.
After Thursday’s win, NU knows that it has a second pitcher. Prior to Thursday, Delaney had pitched 204 and two-thirds of NU’s 217 and two-third innings. The Cats can be more confident in Smith’s ability to eat up some of those innings.
“I’m back in it.” Smith said.
NU gets back in the swing of the Big Ten season with games Saturday and Sunday at Purdue (22-15, 5-5 Big Ten).
