No. 16 Wildcats Peel Orange, 7-2

Sunday, February 12

Tempe, Ariz.

10:00 AM

Northwestern

3-2

Syracuse

0-5

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	Runs R	Hits H	Errors E
Northwestern	0	1	1	3	2	0	0	7	11	1
Syracuse	0	2	0	0	0	0	0	2	6	0

2/12/2006 12:00:00 AM | Softball

Box Score

Feb. 12, 2006

TEMPE, Ariz. -- No. 16 Northwestern rapped out 11 hits Sunday morning to conclude its Kajikawa Classic schedule with a 7-2 win over Syracuse in Tempe, Ariz.

With the win, the Wildcats improve to 3-2 on the year after opening 2006 with one of the toughest weekend slates in the nation. The Orange fall to 0-5 on the season.

While in Tempe, Northwestern defeated No. 15 Oregon State and No. 20 Fresno State in addition to Syracuse. The Wildcats fell to No. 4 Texas and No. 5 Arizona.

Senior Kristen Amegin (West Sacramento, Calif./Elk Grove) led off the second inning with a line-drive double that shot past the centerfielder to the fence. She advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt by senior Jamie Dotson (Santa Ana, Calif./Foothill).

Senior Sheila McCorkle (Costa Mesa, Calif./Mater Dei) followed by bouncing a ball high off the ground in front of the plate, and by the time Syracuse hurler Erin Downey came down with it, McCorkle was safe with a single and runners were on first and third.

Junior Jessica Miller (Elberfeld, Ind./Techumseh) then hit a slow roller to second allowing Amegin to sprint home and give the Wildcats a 1-0 lead.

Syracuse surged back in the bottom half of the inning, putting runners on second and third with two outs on a walk and a double. Northwestern starter Courtnay Foster (Tucson, Ariz./Sahuaro) then struck out Jorden Rosen on a dropped third strike, but Rosen reached and two runs scored when Dotson's throw got away from first baseman Garland Cooper (Mission Viejo, Calif./Santa Margarita Catholic) to give the Orange a 2-1 lead.

The Wildcats knotted the score immediately in the third inning. Freshman Tammy Williams (El Dorado Springs, Mo./Osceola) hit a one-out double over the head of the centerfielder, then scored when junior Katie Logan (Tempe, Ariz./Corona del Sol) hit a high-bouncing single off the third-base bag to tie the game, 2-2.

More Wildcat scoring took place in the fourth. McCorkle drew a leadoff walk and moved to second on a Miller sacrifice bunt. Senior Ashley Crane (Sammamish, Wash./Eastlake) then drove a double into right center to score McCorkle and give Northwestern a 3-2 lead.

Williams drew a two-out walk and stole second to put runners on second and third before Logan hit a single through the hole into left to score two runs and give the 'Cats a 5-2 advantage.

In the fifth, Amegin singled up the middle to lead things off, then was replaced on the base paths by freshman Ann Schraufnagel (Oak Park, Ill./Oak Park River Forest). Dotson advanced Schraufnagel to third with a sharp single to right, then sophomore Kristen Salamon (Kent, Ohio/Kent Roosevelt) ran for Dotson.

McCorkle advanced Salamon to second with a groundout, then Miller dumped a single over the first baseman's head to score Schraufnagel and Salamon and give the Wildcats a 7-2 lead.

Junior Eileen Canney (Paradise, Calif./Paradise) entered the circle in the bottom of the fifth in relief of Foster (2-1), who went four innings, allowing two runs -- none earned -- with nine strikeouts.

Canney pitched three innings of shutout relief, allowing three hits and striking out three to earn her first save of the year.

Logan, Cooper and Amegin all finished 2-for-4 in the game, while Logan and Miller each knocked in three runs. Williams scored twice in the contest.

The game was billed as a matchup between sisters. Sheila McCorkle's younger sister, Tonye, is a freshman at Syracuse, but was unable to play due to illness.

Northwestern returns to action next weekend, Feb. 17-19, at the Louisville Slugger Classic in Las Vegas, Nev.