EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. – Northern Kentucky softball picked up two wins on the first day of the SIUE Tournament, posting a 5-1 win over Butler before a 4-2 victory against Toledo. With the wins, NKU moves to 5-13 on the season, while Butler dipped to 11-13 and Toledo dropped to 10-18.
Game 1: NKU 5, Butler 1
At the Plate
- The Norse tied their season high in hits, recording 12 while holding Butler to seven hits.
- Junior infielder Sydney Ferrante went 3-for-4 from the dish to lead the Norse, also adding two runs to her stat line.
- Sophomore first baseman Kara Meter and senior catcher Dani Devlin went 2-for-3, with Devlin driving in one run for the Norse.
- Freshman outfielder Ava Lawson had two RBI courtesy of a double in the sixth inning for the first multi-RBI game of her career.
In the Circle
- Junior Ashlynn Roberts pitched the full seven innings to move to 2-3 on the season. Roberts surpassed her career high of five strikeouts set on March 8 against Coastal Carolina, striking out seven batters while walking one.
Key Moments
- The game got rolling in the third inning, with both teams plating a run apiece. NKU took the 1-0 lead courtesy of a Devlin double to right center to score Ferrante before Butler scored its lone run off a single up the middle.
- NKU posted two runs in both the fifth and sixth innings to seal the win. Kailey Rossiter provided the winning run when she took advantage of a fielding error to cross the plate and put the Norse up 2-1. Ashley Rains later drove in Ferrante with a single to right center.
- The sixth inning saw Lawson lace her double to give NKU its final two runs, sending Zahrya McFarland and Summer Libecap home.
Norse Notes
- The game marked the first meeting between the Norse and the Bulldogs.
- Paige McQueen extended her reached base streak to 11 games, which leads the active streaks by eight games.
- Devlin moved to three games on her current hitting streak to hold the longest active streak on the team.
- Four Norse had multi-hit games. Ferrante had three while Devlin, McQueen and Meter each had two hits.
Game 2: NKU 4, Toledo 2
At the Plate
- NKU had seven hits, with three Norse contributing multi-hit games.
- Junior DH Kate Bartolovich, freshman centerfielder Ava Lawson and freshman shortstop all went 2-for-3, with Lawson and Stalter both driving in a run apiece.
- Freshman rightfielder Alexis McDaniel added the seventh hit for the Norse, going 1-for-1 at the dish.
In the Circle
- Freshman Vega Theophilus earned the first win of her career, pitching five innings and allowing three hits and no runs. Theophilus struck out one batter and walked one.
- Senior Charlie Nolen got the start in the circle, pitching the first two innings with one strikeout and allowing three runs.
Key Moments
- Toledo got out to a 2-0 lead thanks to an RBI double followed by an RBI triple, but would not cross the plate again for the remainder of the game. The Norse were able to score in the bottom of the first, but continued to trail by one run after Ferrante scored on a wild pitch.
- The Norse tied the game in the fourth inning, sparked by back-to-back doubles from Bartolovich and Lawson, which allowed pinch runner Isabell Alexander to capitalize on a throwing error and reach home. NKU took the lead in the same inning when Stalter singled to left field, allowing Lawson to score.
- NKU plated its final run in the fifth inning, when Lawson singled to right field to drive in McQueen.
Norse Notes
- NKU now holds a 2-0 record over the Rockets in the all-time series.
- With two hits apiece, Lawson had her fifth multi-hit game of the season, Stalter recorded her fourth, and Bartolovich added her third.
- McQueen extended her reached base streak to 12 games, while Ferrante continues to rebuild her active streak with four games.
Up Next
- NKU faces host team SIUE tomorrow at 12 p.m. CT/1 p.m. ET before taking on Ball State at 2 p.m. CT/3 p.m. ET.
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