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Western Illinois University Athletics

Kelsey Marlow
8
Winner Western Illinois WIU 1-0
4
Butler BU 0-2
Winner
Western Illinois WIU
1-0
8
Final
4
Butler BU
0-2
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 R H E
Western Illinois WIU 2 0 3 1 0 2 0 8 12 1
Butler BU 1 0 0 1 0 2 0 4 13 2

W: Kirkpatrick, Kayla (1-0) L: BOROFF, M. (0-1)

0
Central Michigan CMU 0-3
1
Winner Western Illinois WIU 2-0
Central Michigan CMU
0-3
0
Final
1
Western Illinois WIU
2-0
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 R H E
Central Michigan CMU 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 2
Western Illinois WIU 0 0 0 0 1 0 X 1 4 1

W: Hart, Kacyee (1-0) L: Warren, Hanna (0-2)

Game Recap: Softball | | WIU Athletic Communications

Softball Begins 2015 With Pair of Wins

Western Illinois defeated Butler and Central Michigan on Sat. (Feb. 7).


ROSEMONT, Ill. - Kelsey Marlow and Kacyee Hart led the Leathernecks on opening day as Western Illinois came away with two victories on Saturday (Feb, 7). Western defeated Butler 8-4 and then Central Michigan 1-0 to conclude the day.

"Overall I was really happy with how today went," said head coach Holly Van Vlymen. "Our pitchers did a lot better than they had in the past. They worked ahead, they came through in clutch situations and they took it one pitch at a time."

GAME ONE: Western Illinois 8, Butler 4:

Marlow made the most of her Leatherneck debut, driving in four runs and collecting three hits, paving the way for an 8-4 win for Western. Marlow cashed in early, bringing Sammy Marshall home on a sac fly. Marshall had singled and stole second to start the game. After Teagan Walsh singled, Marlow drove in Marshall. Walsh would later score on an illegal pitch.

"Hitting is hitting and I've been hitting the ball since I was four years old," Marlow said. "I had a lot of bottled up excitement but I held it together and tried to do my best. I was a little nervous my first at-bat, but the sac fly gave me the confidence to push through the rest of the game."

The Bulldogs pulled one back, scoring on three consecutive hits off of Kayla Kirkpatrick. The senior bounced back, forcing a popout, a fielder's choice and a fly out to end the threat.

The top of the order did the damage in the third, with Marshall and Walsh both collecting singles, setting the table for an RBI double for Marlow. Holly Hoelting collected her first career RBI with a sac fly and Tierney Bottino plated Marlow on a single to center two batters later, pushing the Western lead to 5-1.

Western tacked on another in the fourth when Marlow singled scoring Marshall for the third time. Butler responded with a single run in the bottom half of the inning. With the score 6-2, the duo of Marlow and Marshall struck again before Lia Romeo tripled to plate Marlow.

With an 8-2 lead, Butler struck twice against Brooke Stulga who relieved Kirkpatrick in the sixth but the freshman closed the door and giving Western an 8-4 win.

"I was really happy with the first game," Van Vlymen said. "We played solid defense and our hitters were executing at the plate. We had base hit after base hit and had good base running. I thought Kayla did a great job and Brooke came in and shut them down as well. Butler is a very good hitting ballclub. Lia did a great job behind the plate, she threw a runner out at third on a pitch that got away. I was really happy with how they came out in game one."

Marshall's four runs scored moved her past Colleen Beibel and Venus Taylor for sole possession of second place in runs scored. The Naperville, Illinois native has scored 124 runs in her career. She now trails only Julie DePolo, who ended her career with 126 runs scored.

GAME TWO: Western Illinois 1, Central Michigan 0:

In a game that only featured eight total hits, Western Illinois came away with a 1-0 victory over MAC West favorites Central Michigan.

"I was happy with how we continued to battle," Van Vlymen said. "We were making adjustments at the plate and continued to talk about just making things happen and we did in the fifth. Kacyee did a great job against some phenomenal hitters. It was a great game."

Both offenses were silent until the fourth when the Chippewas put a runner at third with only one out. During the next at-bat, Kacyee Hart snagged a line drive before fanning another to get out of the jam. CMU threatened again in the fifth, but Hart forced a fly out to end the inning.

The Leathernecks broke through in the fifth. Karissa Kouchis stole second, and on the throw, advanced to third on an error by the catcher. As the CMU defense was throwing the ball into the infield, an errant throw by the centerfielder allowed Kouchis to cross the plate.

Hart would have to work around a leadoff single in the seventh to finish off the complete game shutout. Hart ended the day with four strikeouts while scattering four hits.

"I feel a big difference between freshman year and junior year," Hart said. "I have a lot more games under my belt and I feel 100 times more confident. These first two wins give us a lot of momentum."

The Leathernecks are back in action at the Total Control Sports Invitational on Sunday (Feb. 8) beginning at 9:00 a.m. Western takes on Syracuse followed by a matchup with North Dakota.

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