Feb. 20, 2010

Final Stats

LAS VEGAS - The No. 21 Northwestern softball team dropped three runs on No. 11/12 California in the bottom of the sixth to defeat the Golden Bears, 5-3, on Saturday morning. Cal broke the game open with a run in the fifth to take a 3-1 lead but a two-run home run from Northwestern sealed the Wildcat victory.

The line score for the first two innings for both teams was a mirror image with no runs scored in the first but two for each squad in the second.

Sophomore Jace Williams capitalized on a Wildcat error at second to reach and then stole second when Taylor Kelly hit a sacrifice bunt to move Williams to scoring position at third. Williams then came home to score while Vernae Sevilla reached on a fielder's choice. It was then Sevilla's turn to cross the plate when Frani Echavarria doubled to left for an RBI.

Northwestern nullified the 2-0 lead the Bears built in the second with two runs of its own off the first two batters of the bottom of the second. Michelle Batts had a five-pitch walk and Emily Haug homered to left for the final runs for either team until the fifth inning.

Shannon Thomas led off for the Bears in the top of the fifth with a single to left field off the second pitch she saw. Junior hurler Valerie Arioto walked, moving Thomas to second. Jolene Henderson grounded into a double play to give Northwestern two outs but Thomas was threatening at third. Lindsey Ziegenhirt walked to bring up Williams, and with the crack of a bat, singled to center to score Thomas for Cal's sole run of the inning.

The Thomas run looked to be key with the Bears holding a 3-2 lead after 5.5 innings. With the end of the game in sight, the Cal defense combined to send the Wildcat line-up down in order in the bottom of the fifth.

The bottom of the sixth was quite different for Northwestern, with the Wildcats scoring a game-changing three runs. After Haug drove in a run to knot the game at 4, Kelly Dyer had a two-RBI homer to left for the game-winning hit.

The Wildcats faced just one Cal batter over the minimum in the top of the seventh to ensure their victory.