Northwestern’s first-ever program came courtesy of a 20-7 victory over Mundelein. Thirty-five years later, it swept a doubleheader with Loyola (Chicago) to celebrate its thousandth victory.
“It’s a tremendous accomplishment for our program,” coach Kate Drohan said.
The Wildcats (16-9) picked up win number 999 in the first half of the doubleheader, beating the Ramblers (12-12) 6-0 behind seven shutout innings from senior pitcher Jessica Smith. Smith scattered two hits and struck out a career-high 12 batters for her fifth victory of the year.
“I take it one pitch at a time,” Smith said. “That’s my focus, and I think I did a good job of doing that.”
NU got the day off to a good start when sophomore Emily Allard slapped a lead-off single and promptly stole second and third to put herself 60 feet from home plate. Junior first baseman Adrienne Monka drove Allard home to put the Cats up 1-0 in the first.
The Cats broke the game open in the fourth with a three-run inning that started with a Jordan Wheeler single to center field. The senior left fielder advanced to third on a throwing error on a sacrifice bunt attempt by sophomore center fielder Kristin Scharkey. After Wheeler was thrown out at the plate off an Allard ground ball, another fielder’s choice scored Scharkey to increase the NU lead to 3-0. A groundout by senior Michelle Batts scored Allard, and the third run of the inning scored when senior right fielder Kelly Quinn was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded.
“(The big innings) show we are capable of (scoring lots of runs) every inning,” Drohan said. “Softball is a game of momentum, and we need to keep our foot on the gas pedal.”
Monka hit a solo home run in the sixth to solidify the 6-0 Wildcat win.
In the second game of the doubleheader, another big inning spurred NU to victory. After a scoreless inning and a half, the Cats broke loose in the second, sending 10 batters to the plate, scoring five runs.
Freshman second baseman Marisa Bast got the inning started with a well-hit single into right field. Quinn was once again hit by a pitch to bring up freshman pitcher Sammy Albanese, who laid down a sacrifice bunt to move the runners up a base. Wheeler doubled down the left field line to score Bast. After Scharkey was hit by a pitch, Allard hit a sharp single to left field to score Quinn and Wheeler. Senior third baseman Robin Thompson hit a single to load the bases for Monka, who drew a walk to bring home another run. Batts singled to bring home Allard, but Thompson was thrown out at the plate.
Given a five-run lead, Albanese seemed to be in control until Rambler first baseman Jacqueline Grim and her twin sister, catcher Jenna Grim, crushed home runs in back-to-back innings to cut the lead to 5-2.
The Cats picked up a run in the sixth to take a 6-2 lead into the seventh, but the Ramblers made it an interesting finish. The Ramblers got three of their first four batters on base in the seventh, and Albanese was faced with bases loaded and one out. The situation prompted a visit from Drohan to the circle to talk to Albanese. Albanese picked up her career-best 10th strikeout of the day to get the second out. That brought up Loyola shortstop Lauren Arceneaux, who hit a single into left field that scored Jenna Grim. However, a strong throw from Wheeler gunned out Ramblers left fielder Carly Benford trying to score, and the Cats held on for the win.
“I would have liked to have seen (Albanese) finish the game and really take control,” Drohan said.
