Northwestern
7-9
Stanford University
10-10
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Letourneau, Amy (5-7)
L: Schreyer, Madi (3-3)
Batting:
RBI: Ashby, Erin 4 ; Plaza, Jessica 1 ; Schaberg, Kaitlin 1 ; Winter, Hanna 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Wells, Tylyn 1 ; Roulund, Cassandra 1 ; Sorenson, Kylie 2 ; Noll, Bessie 2 ; Winter, Hanna 1
HBP: Bonstrom, Kayla 1 ; Sorenson, Kylie 1
Batting:
HR: Letourneau, Amy 1 ; Edwards, Anna 1
RBI: DiPrima, Andrea 1 ; Filler, Andrea 1 ; Letourneau, Amy 3 ; Edwards, Anna 4 ; Rabin, Sabrina 1
Base Running:
RUNS: DiPrima, Andrea 1 ; Filler, Andrea 1 ; Letourneau, Amy 2 ; LeBeau, Brianna 2 ; Duehr, Olivia 1 ; Williams, Krista 1 ; Kuhn, Julia 1 ; Edwards, Anna 2 ; Rabin, Sabrina 1
SB: LeBeau, Brianna 1 ; Williams, Krista 1
Game Leaders
Players Mentioned
Northwestern Tops Stanford in Offensive Outburst, 12-7
2/28/2015 12:00:00 AM | Softball
LAKEWOOD, Calif. -- In a game featuring 19 runs on just 13 hits and a lot of ancillary stuff, Northwestern got the best of the offensive explosion against its Pac-12 counterpart Stanford to earn a 12-7 win Saturday at Mayfair Park as part of the Louisville Slugger Invitational.
Northwestern now is 3-0 at this event and improves to 7-9 on the season with its win. Stanford's record is 10-10 on the year with its loss.
Northwestern returns to action tomorrow, Sunday, March 1, against No. 14 UCLA at the 49er Softball Complex on the campus of Long Beach State University. The game is a re-match of a Feb. 13 tilt between the Wildcats and the Bruins at UNLV's Wilson/DeMarini Desert Classic in Las Vegas.
Northwestern cracked the scoreboard first in the bottom of the second, taking advantage of a two-out Stanford error to take a 2-0 lead. With one out in the inning, Julia Kuhn (Middletown, N.J./Middletown South) and Anna Edwards (La Canada, Calif./La Canada) both earned full-count walks with multiple foul balls before moving up on a Caylor Arnold (Mt. Gilead, Ohio/Mt. Gilead) ground out. Freshman Sabrina Rabin (St. Charles, Ill./St. Charles North) then chopped a ball to the Cardinal third baseman, who airmailed first base to allow both Kuhn and Edwards to cross the plate.
Stanford put together a big rally in the top of the third, loading the bases with no outs against Northwestern starter Kristen Wood (Trevor, Wis./Wilmot Union). One run came in on a groundout while a second, unearned run came in on a two-out walk to tie the game, 2-2.
NU responded right away in the bottom half. With one out, Brianna LeBeau (Worth, Ill./H.L. Richards) singled sharply to left before stealing second base. That play proved to be important, because Olivia Duehr (Antioch, Ill./Antioch) followed with a grounder to short. LeBeau timed her run to third to cross the face of the fielder just before the ball arrived, causing enough confusion for an error to occur and for everyone to be safe on the corners. Krista Williams (Pleasanton, Calif./Amador Valley) entered to run for Duehr and stole second to set the stage for Edwards, who smashed a single off the glove of a diving third baseman to put NU back on top, 4-2.
Once again, Stanford put together a rally in the top of the fourth. Midway through, Amy Letourneau (Laguna Niguel, Calif./Santa Margarita Catholic) entered in relief of Wood, and the Cardinal got to her for two singles that tied the game, 4-4.
In the bottom of the fourth, Northwestern took advantage of several Stanford errors and the tight zone at the plate to put a big number six on the board. The inning began when Rabin used her pure speed to beat out a single to the pitcher. Andrea DiPrima (Arlington Heights, Ill./Buffalo Grove) followed with a walk before Andrea Filler (Fort Wayne, Ind./Bishop Dwenger) and Letourneau notched back-to-back singles to bring three Wildcats home. LeBeau reached on Stanford's fourth error of the game before Duehr drew a walk to load the bases.
Later, with one out, Edwards drew a bases-loaded walk before, with two outs, Rabin and DriPrima did the same to force three more runs home and stake the Wildcats to a 10-4 lead.
Midway through the rally, Stanford replaced its starter Madi Schreyer with Haley Snyder, but it did not help. What did help the Cardinal was the three-spot it put on the board in the top of the fifth to cut the Wildcats' lead in half, 10-7.
Letourneau led off the bottom of the fifth with an absolute rocket of a home run to dead center field that cleared not only the temporary barrier but the permanent fencing at least 260 feet away to make it an 11-7 game. The shot was her second of the weekend and season, and the 24th of the junior's career. The next three Wildcats to the plate all hit the ball hard, but right into outs.
Letourneau worked a perfect 1-2-3 top of the sixth to put the first scoreless inning on the board for either side dating to the top of the second frame. Edwards then launched a solo home run to lead off the bottom of the inning and make it a 12-7 NU lead. Edwards' shot was her first of the season and the 19th of her career.
In the top of the seventh, Letourneau allowed only a two-out single to reach base in closing the door for the victory. She earned the win to move to 5-7 on the season with 4.0 innings of relief, giving up three runs on five hits with two walks and two strikeouts.
Wood went 3.0 innings in her start, allowing four runs (three earned) on one hit and five walks with four strikeouts.
At the plate, Edwards had the big day with a 2-for-2 performance including two walks. She drove in four and scored twice. Letourneau was 2-for-3 with three RBIs and two runs, DiPrima walked three times and LeBeau scored twice.
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