MACOMB, Ill. - Hailey Bickford picked up a complete-game victory and Western Illinois hit three home runs in game one of a doubleheader as the Fighting Leathernecks (17-22) split a doubleheader with Northern Illinois (21-21) on Tuesday, April 26.
The Leathernecks fell behind in the first contest before scoring 11 unanswered runs on their way to an 11-1 victory in five innings but dropped the second game by a 10-7 score.
Tuesday's twin bill marked the final regular-season home games of the season for Western Illinois. The Leathernecks had been scheduled to play host to Bradley on May 3, but that game has been canceled due to scheduling conflicts.
Game One: Western Illinois 11, Northern Illinois 1
The Leathernecks picked up four extra-base hits and Bickford shut down the Huskies in a dominating game one performance that saw Western win via the run rule.
Northern Illinois jumped out to a 1-0 lead when Stephanie Toftt scored on a passed ball in the top of the first but would immediately surrender the lead in the bottom of the inning.
Beth Golitko's one-out, two-run triple plated the Leathernecks' first two runs of the contest and Alex Pflieger would add to the lead with an RBI single to put Western Illinois up 3-1 after one inning.
Nikki Marinec would come around to score on Jamie Goss' RBI single in the second to make it 4-1 in favor of the Leathernecks, who tacked on three more runs in the third inning.
Ashley Campbell's two-run blast to center field, her third of the season, gave Western a 6-1 lead before Marinec lined a two-out single to right to plate the Leathernecks' seventh run of the game.
Western Illinois would tack on four more runs in the fourth on three hits and an error. Golitko hit a two-run shot to right center and Pflieger followed with a solo homer, the first of her career. Hannah Frenell's RBI single plated the final run of the game later in the inning.
Bickford (8-6) picked up her third-straight win after allowing just one unearned run on four hits in 5.0 innings. She walked just one and struck out five.
Nicole Gremillion (6-4) took the loss after allowing seven runs (five earned) on eight hits in 3.0 innings of work. She walked two and struck out two. Whitney Owens tossed the final inning and surrendered four runs (three earned) on three hits.
Golitko was a perfect 3-for-3 with four RBI and three runs scored in the first game. Marinec went 2-for-2 with an RBI and a run while Pflieger also had two hits.
The Leathernecks stranded just four runners on the base paths while Northern Illinois left seven on base. The Huskies committed two errors on the field while Western committed three.
Game Two: Northern Illinois 10, Western Illinois 7
Northern Illinois jumped out to an early lead and was able to hold off a furious Leatherneck rally to pick up a victory in the second game of Tuesday's doubleheader.
The Huskies struck for three runs in the first inning on three hits and an error. Amanda Sheppard plated the first tun with an RBI single through the right side before Dani Parrish scored on a throwing error. Alexandra Wulbecker's sacrifice fly to right capped off the scoring and made it 3-0.
The Leathernecks would respond with two runs in the bottom of the inning on RBI singles from Golitko and Goss. Northern Illinois also committed two errors in the inning.
The Huskies plated single runs in the third and fourth innings on an RBI groundout and another sac fly. Northern Illinois scored two more in both the fifth and sixth innings to take a 9-2 lead.
Western Illinois battled back with three runs in the bottom of the sixth. Megan Kelly drove in a run with a one-out double to left and Marinec hit a two-run homer over the left field fence to cut Northern's lead to four runs (9-5).
After the Huskies scored a run in the top of the seventh, the Leathernecks threatened again in the bottom of the inning, but fell just short despite scoring twice in the final frame.
Kelsey Michelini (5-11) took the loss after allowing eight runs (five earned) on nine hits in 5.0 innings. She walked six and recorded one strikeout. Bickford allowed two runs (one earned) on three hits and struck out three in 2.0 innings of relief.
Stephanie Toftt (2-1) picked up the win despite allowing seven runs (four earned) in 7.0 innings. She walked two and struck out two in a complete-game effort.
Tofft helped her own cause with a 4-for-5 effort at the plate. She scored three runs and drove in another as the Huskies pounded out 12 hits in the game.
Goss (2-for-4) and Golitko (2-for-4) led the Leathernecks on offense. Marinec finished 1-for-1 with two RBI and Michelle Prieto scored two runs.
Western Illinois stranded six base runners and committed three errors in the contest. Northern Illinois left nine runners on base and also committed three errors.
The Leathernecks return to action this weekend when they travel to South Dakota State for a three-game series. The action marks the final Summit League series of the season for Western Illinois. The teams will begin the series with a doubleheader beginning at 2 p.m. on Friday.
