Northwestern University Athletics
Northwestern
North Carolina
'Cats Hand No. 4 Washington Its First Loss
3/7/2003 12:00:00 AM | Softball
March 7, 2003
North Carolina Box Score
Washington Box Score
PLANT CITY, Fla. - It is said that the third time is a charm, and that certainly was the case Friday afternoon in the Northwestern softball team's meeting with No. 4 Washington. After dropping their first two meetings of the season to the Huskies, the Wildcats exacted some revenge, handing UW its first loss of the season, 6-5. The 'Cats also defeated North Carolina 8-0 in five innings to move to 4-0 at the Speedline Invitational.
With the two victories, NU improves to 12-5 overall with one game remaining in round-robin play at the tournament, a 10 a.m. Saturday meeting with No. 16/21 Massachusetts. The victory over Washington (20-1-1) guaranteed Northwestern a first-place finish in its pool and a first-round bye in championship round play.
"Today's wins are just one piece of the puzzle," Northwestern head coach Kate Drohan said. "We still have a lot that we want to accomplish this weekend. I thought we showed a lot of consistency today, and our offense has finally exploded."
In a tight affair with the Huskies that went back and forth, it was freshman Jamie Dotson's (Santa Ana, Calif./Foothill) two-out double in the top of the seventh inning that proved to be the game-winner, scoring Carri Leto (El Cajon, Calif./Valhalla) from third base. Dotson's liner down the third-base line barely kicked up chalk to bring in Leto, who tripled with one out in the decisive frame.
Courtnay Foster (Tucson, Ariz./Sahuaro), who came into the game in relief of starter Brie Brown (Nashville, Tenn./Harpeth Hall), got pinch-hitter Courtney Jeffries to pop up to Leto in foul territory to end the game with the potential tying run on second base. Foster picked up the win, allowing just three hits and one run while striking out four in 4.2 innings of work.
After Washington grabbed a 1-0 lead with a run in the bottom of the first inning, Northwestern made the Huskies pay for a combined four errors in the second and third innings, scoring three times to take a 3-1.
However, UW answered back in the bottom of the third as Dena Tyson hit a three-run home run to put the Huskies ahead 4-3, and chasing Brown from the game in the process.
But as it did numerous times throughout the contest, Northwestern refused to go away. With two outs and runners on second and third in the top of the fourth, Brett Nakabayashi (Irvine, Calif./Irvine) lined a single to right-center, putting the Wildcats back on top 5-4.
Washington would tie the game 5-5 on a two-out RBI triple by Megan Owen in the bottom of the fifth, but Dotson came through for the 'Cats in the top of the seventh when it counted most.
"I think it showed a lot of character, a lot of poise and a lot of confidence to answer back every time Washington scored," Drohan said. "We had some great two-strike hitting today. After playing close games against (No. 7) Cal State Fullerton, (No. 2) Arizona and Washington, it's all about taking care of the little things and finishing well."
Nakabayashi, Dotson and Erin Mobley (Santa Ana, Calif./Foothill) led NU with two hits apiece, as the Wildcats out-hit the Huskies 9-8.
In the opening game of the day, Northwestern had little trouble with North Carolina, jumping on the Tar Heels for five runs in the top of the first. An RBI triple by Mobley and a two-run double by J.C. Kira (Honolulu, Hawaii/Saint Francis) highlighted the scoring spree.
After tacking on two more runs in the second inning, Mobley helped institute the necessary margin for the mercy rule with an RBI single in the third to put the Wildcats up 8-0.
Foster had little trouble with the Heels on the mound, allowing only three hits while striking out seven in her four innings pitched before giving way to Lauren Schwendimann (Tustin, Calif./Foothill), who shut North Carolina down in the fifth.
Nakabayashi, Dotson and Mobley posted two hits apiece for NU to record two multi-hit games in the same day. The 'Cats recorded 11 hits, compared to five for UNC.
Following the game against Massachusetts Saturday morning, Northwestern opens championship round play at 7 p.m. Eastern time against an opponent to be determined.
