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sb
George Hartmann
0
North Dakota UND 11-25
1
Winner Western Illinois WIU 6-21
North Dakota UND
11-25
0
Final
1
Western Illinois WIU
6-21
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 R H E
North Dakota UND 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 2
Western Illinois WIU 1 0 0 0 0 0 X 1 5 0

W: Carlin, Abby (6-7) L: Jannay Jones (4-9)

2
North Dakota UND 11-25
4
Winner Western Illinois WIU 7-21
North Dakota UND
11-25
2
Final
4
Western Illinois WIU
7-21
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 R H E
North Dakota UND 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 2 8 2
Western Illinois WIU 0 2 0 0 0 2 X 4 9 0

W: Rodriguez, Savannah (1-3) L: Jackie Albrecht (4-7) S: Carlin, Abby (2)

Game Recap: Softball | | WIU Athletic Communications

Leathernecks Clinch Series Victory

Western Illinois softball won both games of a Saturday doubleheader, will play Sunday at 11 a.m.

MACOMB, Ill. – The Western Illinois University Fighting Leatherneck softball team played on Saturday (April 2), defeating the North Dakota Fighting Hawks 1-0 and 4-2 at Mary Ellen McKee Stadium. With the wins, Western moves to 3-2 in conference play and secures the team's first series victory of the season.
 
"I'm excited for our team because they've officially earned their first series win of the season which is huge," head coach Alisa Goler said. "I thought all of our pitchers that threw today did exactly what they were supposed to and I'm really proud of them for understanding their role, especially with the changes we made throughout the games… I think we just gutted it out today and I'm proud of our performance."
 
Game one: Western Illinois 1 – 0 North Dakota
Abby Carlin started and went the distance in game one, earning her sixth win of the season while outlasting the UND starter in a memorable pitching duel. In seven innings of work she allowed three hits and walked one, striking out five of the 23 batters she faced. Saturday's performance was Carlin's second complete-game shutout of the season, as she struck out ten in a 2-0 victory over Evansville on March 13.
 
The game's lone run came in the first inning of action, with aggressive baserunning helping the Leatherneck offense. Ami Ill got on base after a fielding error by the UND defense, stole second, and advanced to third on another UND defensive mishap. Soon after, Savannah Rodriguez would ground into a fielder's choice that scored Ill and gave Western the one-run advantage. Jorja Hudson recorded her third multi-hit game of the season as Western Illinois' defense stepped up in a huge way with no errors as the Leathernecks paired with five hits and Carlin's gem of a game.
 
Game two: Leathernecks 4 – 2 Fighting Hawks
UND opened the scoring with a two-run double to right-center in the second inning, but Western Illinois quickly responded. After Gabriela Drager walked to lead off the bottom half of the second, Maddy Anderson pinch-hit and singled through the left side to advance Drager to third. On the ensuing at-bat, Torince Muczynski would hit a grounder to second that send Drager across the plate and cut the Fighting Hawk lead in half. Anderson then scored in the next at-bat with some aggressive baserunning after a North Dakota error and tied the game at two.
 
It would take four innings before Western found the run it was looking for, but Jorja Hudson took a bases-loaded walk to take the lead with one out. Georgia Rea then scored during the next at-bat after another UND error to give Western the 4-2 advantage.
 
Three Leathernecks finished with multiple hits in game two, as Ami Ill (2-4), Kaylee Ketcherside (2-3) and Savannah Rodriguez (2-3) showed up in a big way for Western's offense. Georgia Rea, Torince Muczynski and Maddy Anderson also recorded hits, as WIU finished with nine total. Anderson started in the circle for Western Illinois, pitching four innings and allowing four hits, two runs (both earned) and two walks while striking out one. Savannah Rodriguez came on in relief for the fifth and sixth innings with two scoreless innings, and Abby Carlin closed the door with one strikeout across four batters faced for her second save of the season.
 
After struggling last weekend with 11 errors in three games, the Western Illinois defense finished Saturday's doubleheader perfect and was one of many things head coach Alisa Goler saw as a takeaway from both games.
 
"The defense was great today; we did every little thing we were supposed to and we also found ways to produce runs offensively. When we gave up two runs and then came back to score two in the bottom half of the inning, I think that was the first time we've done that all year which was awesome," Goler said. "(Savannah Rodriguez) was big on both sides of the ball and I think Maddy Anderson deserves a lot of credit as well. She had one at-bat, got on base, and executed perfect baserunning to steal that second run and tie it up."
 
Western Illinois is back in action at 11 a.m. on Sunday (April 3) and will look for the team's first series sweep of the season.
 
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