If ever you feel the urge to climb on top of Welsh-Ryan Arena, make sure that Adrienne Monka is not up to bat.
The senior blasted a two-run home run onto the top of the Northwestern basketball arena in the first game of a doubleheader Sunday, helping the Wildcats (21-26, 8-10 Big Ten) win the game and the weekend series against Ohio State (28-20, 7-10).
Monka became the first Wildcat to hit the roof twice in her career. Only four other NU players have ever accomplished the feat, including freshman Olivia Duehr earlier this year. Her home run broke a 1-1 tie in the fourth inning, and junior Meghan Lamberth made the 3-1 lead stand, allowing only two hits and no walks in the last three innings.
The big game for Monka added to a streak of seven hits, three home runs and nine RBIs over her last four games. The first baseman hit only eight home runs in the first 43 games of the season but has turned her game around just in time to make a playoff push.
“(I’m) just trying to keep things simple,” Monka said. “I made one adjustment this week that really helped me out.”
Coach Kate Drohan said she knows Monka’s production is key to the team’s success.
“Monka putting the ball on the roof, it just inspires all of us,” she said. “She had great battles in the batter’s box and took some really aggressive cuts, so that kind of set the tone for all of us.”
In the first game of the series Saturday, Ohio State struck quickly in the first with three hits and two runs. From there, the two teams were caught in a pitcher’s duel until the bottom of the sixth inning, when the Cats finally scratched out a run on an RBI single by shortstop Emily Allard.
The Buckeyes made up for that run in the top of the seventh, breaking open the game with four runs on three hits and two walks. The Cats tried to start a rally in the final inning but managed only one run, losing by a score of 6-2.
In the rubber match on Sunday, the Buckeyes once again struck in the first inning, but NU answered in the bottom half with an RBI single from sophomore Marisa Bast.
After an RBI single by freshman Anna Edwards, Monka came to the rescue again with a two-run single in the bottom of the second to give the Cats a 4-1 lead.
NU built a comfortable 8-3 lead going into the top of the seventh with a solo home run and two-RBI single from Duehr and an RBI hit from Mari Majam.
Following a short rain delay in the sixth, starter Sammy Albanese seemed to lose some of her command and gave way to Lamberth. The junior hurler allowed two runs to score but finished off the Buckeyes for the 8-5 victory.
For the weekend, Lamberth pitched 8.1 innings, giving up six hits and two runs.
“I think having my change-up working really kept the hitters off balance and kept (them) guessing,” Lamberth said. “They weren’t really able to get comfortable in there.”
The Cats displayed the aggressive style of play they have preached all year, stealing seven bases in the series. NU ranks third in the Big Ten with 73 stolen bases and has the conference’s leading base stealer in Allard.
“When we met before that game, we decided to be really aggressive and really attack and not play it safe and maybe not even play it smart, just really be aggressive,” Drohan said. “The team responded, and they had a lot of fun running around the bases.”
