INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. - Julie DePolo was 2-for-4 with two RBI and two runs scored as Western Illinois edged out IUPUI 5-4 in nine innings, Tuesday.

"I was really proud of our team today," Western Illinois head coach Holly Van Vlymen said. "The scoring went back and forth and our team really stuck together and kept their composure."

The Westerwinds (7-22, 5-4 The Summit League) were the first on board in the second inning. Britt Mason and Lauren Furgala tabbed back-to-back singles and a double steal to occupy bases two and three. DePolo RBI singled to second base, scoring both Mason and Furgala. Michelle Prieto reached on an error with two outs as Colleen Biebel laid down a bunt toward third base to score DePolo. Western finished the inning with a 3-0 lead over the Jaguars (4-22, 1-12 The Summit League).

IUPUI answered back in the bottom half as Amy Raker hit a home run to lead off the inning and put the Jaguars on the board. Two outs and a walk later, another home run brought the score to 3-3.

Pulling away from the tie, Western scored one run in the sixth inning when Mason, who singled to lead off the inning, went home on a Beth Golitko single up the middle.

Once again the Jaguars answered back in the bottom half of the inning by scoring a run on a pair of hits to tie the game at 4-4.

The game remained tied into extra innings. A pair of fielding errors with two outs allowed DePolo to get on and eventually go home to win the game for Western Illinois, 5-4.

The Westerwinds had 10 hits to the Jaguars' nine and only three errors to IUPUI's six. Biebel had two hits with an RBI, Mason was 2-for-4 with two runs scored, Furgala was 2-for-3 with one run scored and Golitko pinch hit for a hit with an RBI.

"The bottom of our order really came through for us," Van Vlymen said. "We hit well but we need to improve on our base running and we look for everyone to contribute tomorrow."

Pitcher Lori Pankratz picked up the win, taking her record to 3-6 on the season, while Raker (0-6) suffered the loss. Pankratz pitched the full nine innings, allowing nine hits and striking out nine batters. Raker pitched seven innings and allowed five hits with three strikeouts.

"Lori pitched a really great game," stated Van Vlymen. "Although home runs did occur, she went in and stuck it out until the very end for us to come out on top."

Western Illinois and IUPUI will conclude the three-game conference series with a double header, April 16 at 4 p.m.