Petersen's Inside The Park Walk-Off Bests 22nd Ranked Badgers, 5-4 (8)

3/25/2017 4:23:00 PM | Softball

Box Score

EVANSTON, Ill. – Senior Anna Petersen clubbed two home runs including an inside-the-park walk-off in the bottom of the eighth inning to give Northwestern a come-from-behind, 5-4 (8) victory over No. 22 Wisconsin Saturday at Sharon J. Drysdale Field.

The win evens the series at a game apiece, improving Northwestern to 12-15 on the year and 1-1 in the conference. Wisconsin's 13-game winning streak is snapped with their loss, dropping the Badgers to 22-3 on the year, 1-1 in the league.

The Wildcats and Badgers conclude their series at noon CT tomorrow, Sunday, March 26.

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Petersen's first home run tied the game in the bottom of the third inning, but it was her eight-inning home run that brought the drama. After Northwestern scored in the bottom of the seventh to keep the contest rolling into extras, starter Kaley Winegarner held Wisconsin scoreless in the eighth thanks to a tremendous play by Alcy Bush at first.

Then, in the bottom of the inning, Petersen led off with a deep drive to right field that tailed away from the Badgers' Jordan Little. Little went into a dive, but the ball nicked off her glove and rolled away to the fence. Petersen was on her horse from the moment the ball left the bat, charging home and scoring standing up to give NU the win.

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The blast also rewarded another stellar start for Winegarner. The sophomore went all eight innings and allowed just three base hits and two walks against the high-octane Badgers. She improves to 2-2 on the year.

Given the way the game ended, the very first play of the game was quite foreshadowing. NU centerfielder Sabrina Rabin raced to the fence in left center field and robbed a home run from Wisconsin leadoff batter Kelsey Jenkins.

Winegarner and Rabin in the top half helped set the stage for the Wildcats to put a ton of pressure on the Badgers' defense during a two-run bottom half. Rabin started with a soft ground ball through the wickets of the pitcher for an error before miscommunication on a little pop up from Marissa Panko fell in for a single. Kenzie Ellis sacrificed both runners up a bag before Morgan Nelson ripped a single through the left-side of the infield. Rabin scored and so did Panko when the left fielder briefly misplayed the ball for UW's second error of the frame.

After the runs, NU loaded the bases with two outs when Sammy Nettling reached on an error and Brooke Marquez walked. Alcy Bush then lined a ball into the left-centerfield gap, but the Badger left fielder was able to reach out and make a running catch to keep NU's lead at 2-0.

That play, and the fact that NU was not able to cash in on three more hits in the second, loomed large in the third. It took until the third inning for Wisconsin to notch its first hit, but a walk, a single and a home run quickly put the Badgers on top in the game, 3-2.

Anna Petersen got in on the home run action in a big way in the bottom half. The senior knotted the score in the bottom of the third with one swing, sending a soaring dinger off the Welsh-Ryan Arena wall to make it a 3-3 contest heading into the fourth.

Petersen's two home runs in the game were her second and third of the year. She now has five in her career.

Wisconsin wrestled the lead back once again with a two-out solo home run in the fifth. Northwestern put a couple of balls in play in the bottom half in an attempt to answer, but Nelson was robbed of extra bases by a diving catch down the right field line before Nettling grounded out DEEP in the hole at short following an incredible throw.

Panko helped keep the score 4-3 in the top of the sixth, charging an awkward flare behind the circle from her shortstop position and firing just in time to first to strand a pair of Badgers on base. In the bottom of the sixth, Marquez boomed a double into the gap in right center with one away but ended up stuck there at the end of the inning.

Winegarner tossed a perfect top of the seventh to keep the NU deficit still at one. Then, in the bottom of the seventh, Rabin led off with a single. Panko dropped down a bunt, but the second baseman covering at first dropped the throw for an error, allowing everyone to be safe. Ellis followed with a delicious sacrifice bunt to move both Wildcats up a bag before Nelson hit a perfectly placed grounder that allowed Rabin to romp home and send the game into extra innings, 4-4.

In the top of the eighth, the second Badger to the plate walked and stood at second base with two gone. A hard-hit ground ball then seemed destined for right field and a Wisconsin run, but Alcy Bush appeared out of nowhere to dive and stab the ball before getting up and racing to the bag in time to end the inning -- and set the stage for Petersen's heroics.

In addition to Petersen's two solo home runs, Rabin and Panko each had two hits in the game. Rabin scored twice.