Northwestern
3-6
Long Beach State University
6-4
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Wood, Kristen (2-2)
L: Hansen, Amanda (2-3)
Batting:
2B: Cookson, Hannah 1
HR: Lombardi, Lauren 1
RBI: Lombardi, Lauren 2
Base Running:
RUNS: Tobler, Haley 1 ; Lombardi, Lauren 1
HBP: Pohl, Summer 1
Batting:
HR: DiPrima, Andrea 1 ; Marquez, Brooke 1
RBI: DiPrima, Andrea 2 ; Arnold, Caylor 1 ; Marquez, Brooke 2
SH: Arnold, Caylor 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Williams, Krista 1 ; DiPrima, Andrea 1 ; Filler, Andrea 1 ; Panko, Marissa 1 ; Marquez, Brooke 1
SB: Williams, Krista 1 ; Panko, Marissa 1 ; LeBeau, Brianna 1
Game Leaders
Players Mentioned
Northwestern Earns 5-2 Win Over Long Beach State
2/15/2015 12:00:00 AM | Softball
Long Beach State entered this game with a 3-1 record in the tournament including a pair of run-rule victories on Saturday. The 49ers fall to 6-4 overall on the season after Wood (2-2) limited their high-powered offense to a pair of runs on three hits and four walks with five strikeouts.
Wood took a no-hitter into the fifth inning for the second-straight day, allowing only a one-out walk in the first inning before the 49ers got a two-out double in that fifth frame. Her effort along with a pair of Northwestern home runs helped the Wildcats snap a six-game skid to improve to 3-6 on the year.
Northwestern returns to action next weekend, Feb. 20-22, at the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic in Cathedral City, Calif.
Northwestern started the scoring in the bottom of the second by hitting Long Beach State hurler Amanda Hansen's pitches right back at her. Andrea Filler (Fort Wayne, Ind./Bishop Dwenger) led off with a single to center, then moved to second on a wild pitch. Julia Kuhn (Middletown, N.J./Middletown South) followed with a single that bounded off the pitcher to the shortstop, moving Filler to third. Freshman Marissa Panko (Naperville, Ill./Benet Academy) entered the game to run for Kuhn, and later stole second to give NU runners at second and third with one out.
Junior Caylor Arnold (Mt. Gilead, Ohio/Mt. Gilead) brought in the first run with a perfect sacrifice bunt, then Brooke Marquez (Garden Grove, Calif./Marquez) knocked another hard-hit single off the pitcher to bring Panko home for a 2-0 Northwestern lead after two innings.
Long Beach State broke up Wood's no-hitter with two outs in the fifth inning, getting a double followed by two walks to load the bases in its first true threat of the game. Wood bounced back to strike out a pinch hitter to keep the 49ers empty on the scoreboard.
Marquez came to the plate to lead off the bottom of the fifth following the K and kept the good times rolling with the first home run of her collegiate career to extend Northwestern's lead to 3-0. One out later, Krista Williams (Pleasanton, Calif./Amador Valley) singled to left before Andrea DiPrima (Arlington Heights, Ill./Buffalo Grove) drove a jam-shot over the fence for a powerful two-run homer and a 5-0 NU edge after five innings of play.
The blast was DiPrima's second of the year and the sixth of her career. LBSU replaced Hansen in the circle with Selene Polamalu after DiPrima's homer.
The home run insurance came in handy when Long Beach State found the scoreboard in the top of the sixth via a one-out, two-run home run of its own to cut NU's lead to 5-2.
The 49ers entered Lacey Alderman into the circle to begin the sixth, likely due to a pair of warning track outs made by the Wildcats against Polamalu to end the fifth. Alderman issued a leadoff walk to Kuhn, who gave way to Brianna LeBeau (Worth, Ill./H.L. Richards) as a pinch runner. LeBeau stole second and eventually was stranded on third.
Long Beach State did not go quietly in the top of the seventh. The first two batters reached on a single and an HBP before Wood got a pop-up to Marquez at second. The next batter battled Wood for double-digit pitches before succumbing on a fly ball to DiPrima in right. A groundout to Filler at short ended the game.
Marquez had a breakout contest at the plate, going 2-for-3 with two RBIs and a run scored. DiPrima drove in two and Williams had a pair of hits for the Wildcats.
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