GREEN BAY, Wis. – Behind yet another standout performance from pitcher
Alicia Flores, the Northern Kentucky softball program won its opening round Horizon League Championship game with a 1-0 victory over Youngstown State at King Park on Wednesday afternoon.
With the win, the Norse advanced to the winner's bracket of the tournament and will play Robert Morris on Thursday, May 11 at 3:30 PM ET.
THE BASICS
FINAL SCORE: Northern Kentucky – 1, Youngstown State – 0 (7 innings)
LOCATION: King Park – Green Bay, Wisconsin
RECORDS: NKU 20-29 (13-9 HL), YSU 24-26 (12-10 HL)
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
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Alicia Flores threw another gem in the circle as she went all seven innings and allowed just two hits and no runs to go with seven strikeouts. It was the Zionsville, Indiana native's third shutout and sixth complete game of the season. She also collected her seventh victory on the year and moved into fifth in the Horizon with 111 punchouts.
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Megan Lenhart paced the Norse offense at the dish as she finished with the lone NKU RBI on the day off a perfect 1-for-1 outing.
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Maddie Lacer scored NKU's run in the victory.
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Ella LeMonier (1-for-3),
Brielle DiMemmo (1-for-2) and
Kayla Shymkewich (1-for-2) also collected hits for the Norse.
- It was the second straight year that Northern Kentucky shutout Youngstown State in the tournament's opening round game as the Norse also took a 1-0 win from the Penguins back on May 11, 2022.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- The Norse pushed the only run of the game across in the bottom of the fourth inning as Lenhart sent a hard ball right back up the middle that scored Lacer as NKU jumped out to a 1-0 lead.
- NKU held its 1-0 advantage through the top of the seventh, where Youngstown State was able to get a runner on first base with one out. The Penguins then sent an absolute rocket to deep centerfield, but LeMonier was there to pull the ball back into play at the wall to rob the home run and keep it a 1-0 contest.
- Flores got the next YSU student-athlete to pop out to seal the 1-0 victory.
NEXT UP
Northern Kentucky advances to the winner's bracket of the tournament and will take on No. 2 seed Robert Morris on Thursday, May 11 at 3:30 PM ET. Fans and supporters can
watch the game nationwide on ESPN+ or follow along with the
live stats of the contest here.
FOLLOW NKU NORSE SOFTBALL
Get in the game and follow Northern Kentucky's NCAA Division I softball team through
@NKUNorseSB on Twitter,
@nkunorsesb on Instagram,
nkunorsesball on Facebook and
subscribe to the NKU Norse Youtube channel.
