Natalie Papi hit her second home run of the season to spark a five-run rally and lead the Norse to a 5-3 win over Lewis in Game 2 of Sunday's doubleheader.
Game 1 box score |
Game 2 box score
ROMEOVILLE, Ill. – Late-inning comebacks have become a bit of a theme for the Northern Kentucky University softball team, which used seventh-inning runs to sweep a Great Lakes Valley Conference doubleheader from Lewis on Sunday.
NKU won with scores of 1-0 in the opener and 5-3 in the nightcap. With the victories, NKU is now 22-12 overall and 12-8 in GLVC play.
Game 1 saw
Kari Lang play the hero for the Norse, as she sent her fourth home run of the season over the centerfield wall with two outs in the seventh inning. It was just the second hit of the game and all pitcher
Emily Schwaeble (16-3) needed, as she shutout the Flyers on four hits with three strikeouts.
Lewis (16-21, 8-14 GLVC) sought retribution early in Game 2 when Jayme Hefler manufactured a run in the bottom of the first inning to open the scoring. Hefler led off with a bunt single, stole second, took third on a wild pitch and scored on a single from Lauren Hanford.
Hefler helped the cause again in the fifth inning with a two-run triple to left center, extending the Flyer lead to 3-0.
Lang once again factored into the Norse comeback, starting the rally with a one-out single. She didn't stay on the base paths long, as
Natalie Papi followed up with a two-run home run to center field, her second of the season. After
Mandi McQueen was hit by a pitch and
Dee Dee Davis hit an infield single,
Kaylin Steinmetz gave the Norse the lead with her 15th home run of the season, a bomb over the left field wall.
The five-run outburst was enough to give
Alex Caudill (6-8) the win after giving up three runs on seven hits and striking out three batters.
The Norse managed seven hits in the contest, with Schwaeble adding a 2-4 performance and Caudill picking up her first double of the season in a 1-3 effort.
NKU concludes its six-game conference road trip on Tuesday when the Norse take on Bellarmine. The Norse then play their next 12 games at the Frank Ignatus Grein Softball Complex beginning Friday against Lewis.
