During its annual trip to the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic, Northwestern dropped three games to unranked opponents and won just one. It marked the team’s first back-to-back losing nonconference weekends since the 2017 season — the last time the program finished with a losing record in a completed season.
With redshirt freshman pitcher Signe Dohse in the circle to start, the Wildcats (6-8, 0-0 Big Ten) started their five-game stretch in Cathedral City, California with a 3-2 loss to Seattle.
Freshman infielder Kaylie Avvisato carried her offensive momentum from the team’s first two weekends into that Friday matchup, driving a single into left field in the first inning. However, her hot start couldn’t propel any further NU scoring, as junior infielder Kansas Robinson and sophomore utility player Riley Grudzielanek both promptly hit into outs to end the inning.
NU’s first run of the weekend came in the second inning, with junior infielder Bridget Donahey and sophomore outfielder Isabel Cunnea recording back-to-back doubles.
The ’Cats had a chance to extend their lead in the third inning when Grudzielanek and sophomore catcher Emma Raye followed a Robinson double with consecutive walks. But when Donahey grounded out to end the inning, three runners were stranded on the basepaths.
Seattle responded in the fourth, capitalizing on a fielding error by Avvisato to tie the game at 1-1. Then, a two-out RBI double in the fifth gave the Redhawks (6-6, 0-0 West Coast) a 2-1 lead.
Though NU tied things up in the top of the seventh, sophomore pitcher Renae Cunningham couldn’t notch the save, conceding a game-ending run in the bottom of the inning on a fielder’s choice play, when Robinson — playing first base — was called for defensive obstruction.
Coach Kate Drohan’s squad’s lone win of its West Coast road trip came in the form of a 6-1 victory over Utah Saturday.
Graduate student pitcher Lauren Boyd faced all but one batter en route to her third win in the circle this season.
Following three scoreless innings for both teams, a walk, a sacrifice bunt and an error allowed Donahey to score in the fourth. But the Utes (4-11, 0-0 Big 12) fired right back with a run of their own in the subsequent half inning.
NU’s most prolific scoring performance of the weekend came in the top of the seventh when they managed five runs on four hits and reached base on two Utah errors.
Two runs came across on a double by junior outfielder Kelsey Nader as Donahey, Raye and Avvisato all also recorded hits in the inning.
The ’Cats were shutout in their second Saturday showdown, though, falling 2-0 to Saint Mary’s.
Following a tight defensive showing for both squads through the first five and a half frames, the Gaels (5-6, 0-0 West Coast) scored both of their runs in the sixth, using small ball opportunities to peel ahead.
Though a Robinson walk and a Cunnea single threatened an NU comeback in the seventh, Cunningham went down swinging and Raye flew out to strand both runners and end the game.
In their final contest of the trip, the ’Cats saw what had been a 6-0 advantage dissipate as they conceded a season-high 15 runs to Cal.
Four pitchers shared the ball-hurling duties in the loss, but none were able to contain the Golden Bears (10-4, 0-0 ACC) as a costly error caused NU to fall into an inescapable hole.
Two first-inning home runs — a leadoff shot by senior infielder Grace Nieto and a 2-run blast by Donahey — gave the ’Cats an early 3-0 lead, and they matched their first-frame total with three more runs in the second.
But when Nieto committed an error in the bottom of the inning, six unearned runs crossed the plate, and NU’s early momentum faded.
At bat, Nieto led the team with three hits and three runs, but it wasn’t enough to offset her defensive miscue. No player had more than Nieto’s five total hits all weekend.
Following another tough slate, the ’Cats will head to Louisville, Kentucky, for five games next weekend.
Email: audreypachuta2027@u.northwestern.edu
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