No. 9 Northwestern secures series over No. 23 Michigan with 6-4 comeback victory
On a much drier day, the No. 9 Northwestern Wildcats resumed play against the No. 23 Michigan Wolverines, continuing where they left off with two outs in the top of the third inning. Sophomore pitcher Lauren Boyd returned to the circle for the Wildcats while the Wolverines turned to veteran pitcher Alex Storako, who took the loss in game one of the series on Friday, to start the doubleheader.
The weather wasn't the only mishap to occur during the two innings of play yesterday. In the bottom of the first, a potential 2-0 lead for the Wildcats thanks to a two-run home run from senior shortstop Maeve Nelson was erased due to a base running error by senior catcher Jordyn Rudd.
However, the Wildcats picked up right where they left off, as Boyd finished the top of the third on Sunday with one walk and no runs scored. Senior outfielder Skyler Shellmeyer, Northwestern's lead-off batter, began a rally with a single to left field, followed by a single to left center from graduate outfielder Rachel Lewis. After two pop ups, senior first baseman Nikki Cuchran ripped a double down the right field line to score Shellmeyer, getting the Wildcats on the board first (again).
In the top of the fourth, the Wolverines answered with a rally of their own, breaking the game open to score four runs. Graduate second baseman Melina Livingston got things started with a single up the middle, and advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt by graduate third baseman Taylor Bump. Junior first baseman Lauren Esman then reached on an error, and junior right fielder Audrey LeClair reached with a bunt single loading the bases for Michigan.
With the stage set, sophomore designated player Sierra Kersten unloaded on a 1-0 pitch for a double to the left center gap, reaching third on a Wildcats throwing error and clearing the bases to give the Wolverines a 3-1 lead. Michigan would then tack on one more run on an infield single from graduate outfielder Kristina Burkhardt, scoring Kersten before Boyd was able to escape from further trouble.
Yet, the Wildcats would not be silent for long, as sophomore third baseman Hannah Cady immediately responded with a lead-off home run to left center field, cutting the Michigan lead to 4-2 in the bottom of the fourth.
Boyd returned to the circle in the top of the fifth, collecting a groundout, line out and strikeout to quiet the Wolverines. Storako similarly shut down the Wildcats in the bottom of the inning, forcing two strikeouts and a groundout to keep the score at 4-2.
After a clean sixth inning from Boyd, in which she collected her fourth strikeout of the game, the Wildcats threatened a comeback as freshman second baseman Grace Nieto reached on an error and advanced to second for the second time in the game, and Shellmeyer followed with a walk, bringing Lewis to the plate.
On an 0-2 pitch, Lewis hit a towering three-run home run off the roof of Welsh-Ryan Arena, giving the Wildcats a 5-4 lead with her team-leading twelfth homer of the year. In doing so, Lewis not only secured the lead but also made history, becoming the first Wildcat to ever hit the roof of Welsh-Ryan three times in their career.
But, Northwestern wasn't finished.
Similar to Friday's comeback, Rudd followed Lewis with a home run of her own, taking Storako's 1-0 pitch to left field and tacking on another run for the Wildcats to make it 6-4 and force Storako out of the game. Freshman pitcher Lauren Derkowski got the Wolverines out of the inning with a ground out and strikeout.
With the lead secured, Northwestern also opted for a pitching change, leaning on senior pitcher Danielle Williams for the save. Williams completely silenced the Wolverines in their last chance, racking up three strikeouts to secure the comeback victory and series win for the Wildcats.
Thanks to timely hitting and clutch pitching, the Wildcats extended their win streak to 14 games with the victory and now sit atop Big Ten standings with a 5-0 conference record.
Northwestern will look to secure the sweep over the Wolverines with the second game of the doubleheader later today.
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