After splitting its doubleheader with Iowa on Saturday, Northwestern entered Sunday needing a win to secure the series victory.
The Wildcats wasted no time in sealing their Sunday victory.
NU (16-20, 4-5) raced to a 10-run advantage after several Iowa (15-20, 5-4) miscues, and the Cats held off a late rally to beat the Hawkeyes 12-6.
Sophomore third baseman Marisa Bast hit her 10th home run of the season, and freshman right fielder Olivia Duehr capped her stellar weekend with a crucial hit to give the Cats a lead they never relinquished.
“(The win) gives us so much momentum heading into Minnesota,” Duehr said. “That series is even more important for us.”
After being swept at Nebraska, the Cats have won two consecutive Big Ten series, rising to 4-5 in conference play. Bast noted the parity of the Big Ten, which makes each series especially important.
“After dropping the first series to Nebraska, we’re focusing on getting as many wins as we can,” she said. “The other Big Ten teams are beating each other up.”
Coach Kate Drohan said the team focuses on two major points: being smarter and “winning tougher.” On Sunday, both contributed to the lopsided victory, which she attributed in part to the team’s strong conditioning.
“We want to be able to win tougher,” coach Kate Drohan said. “We’re a fit team, and I want to lean on that on Sunday.”
The Cats, who struggled against pitcher Chelsea Lyon in the first two games of the series, were aided by five Hawkeye errors, three of which came in the opening inning. After falling victim to mistakes in Wednesday’s 9-1 loss to Notre Dame,NU completed an error-free weekend.
“Goose eggs across the board,” Drohan said. “We didn’t have an error on the weekend. It’s an approach. It’s a mentality.”
With the bases loaded and two out in the first, Duehr singled to right field, driving in first baseman Adrienne Monka. Bast also scored after right fielder Malloree Grove mishandled the ball. The Cats scored three more runs in the inning and added another in the second to mount a 6-0 lead.
Freshman pitcher Amy Letourneau took the hill for the Cats and was in control early on, allowing just two base runners in the first three innings. Iowa put two runners in scoring position in the fourth, but Letourneau painted the inside corner with a fastball to strike out second baseman Bradi Wall and end the threat.
“Amy Letourneau had great command,” Drohan said. “A couple of times, she ran into trouble but I love her stuff.”
The Cats struck for four more in the fourth to extended the lead to 10-0, highlighted by sophomore designated player Sammy Albanese’s two-run single. Iowa rallied in the top of the fifth, finally getting to Letourneau, who yielded five runs in the inning.
Junior Meghan Lamberth entered with two outs and retired Melanie Gladden to end the threat. Lamberth had several key strikeouts, and allowed just one run in 2 1/3 innings of work.
With Monka on first, Bast drove a 2-1 pitch from Kayla Massey over the right field wall to close the scoring. One of NU’s strengths this year has been Bast’s ability to protect former All-American Monka in the lineup.
Bast said this year, the team is rife with power threats.
“Up and down the lineup, we can hit home runs,” she said. “Pitchers don’t know who to throw to.”
The crowd of 206 witnessed a scary moment in the second inning when second baseman Anna Edwards and center fielder Kristin Scharkey collided while tracking down a fly ball. Edwards came up with the catch, but Scharkey lay injured for several minutes and was substituted out of the game.
Drohan said that she was unaware of the extent of the injury, and added that she does not comment on injuries regardless.
NU has the week to prepare for Minnesota, who will travel to Evanston for another critical three-game conference series.
