CLEVELAND – The Northern Kentucky softball program will turn their full attention to championship season after suffering a 7-2 setback to Cleveland State in a Horizon League clash and the regular season finale for the Norse at Viking Field on Saturday afternoon.
With the result, Northern Kentucky clinched the No. 4 seed in the upcoming Horizon League Tournament. The Norse will play in the opening game of the championship on Wednesday, May 8 at Youngstown State.
THE BASICS
FINAL: Northern Kentucky – 2, Cleveland State – 7 (7 innings)
LOCATION: Viking Field – Cleveland, Ohio
RECORDS: NKU 22-20 (14-10 HL), CSU 18-23 (14-10 HL)
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
- The top of the order had a big day as
Ella LeMonier (1-for-2, one run scored),
Jena Rhoads (1-for-3, one run) and
Olivia Pastin (one RBI) paced the NKU attack.
-
Sydni Barnes (1-for-3) and
Mack Brow (1-for-3) also chipped in base knocks for the Norse.
- Both Rhoads and Barnes each laced a double in the contest.
-
Lauryn Hicks finished out the game with a scoreless inning in relief. She struck out one batter and allowed just a single hit.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- Cleveland State jumped out to a quick 3-0 lead after two runs in the bottom of the first and another in the second.
- Northern Kentucky punched back with two runs of its own in the top of the third off a run-scoring double by Rhoads, followed by a RBI sacrifice fly by Pastin to make it a 3-2 game.
- The rest of the contest belonged to the Vikings as CSU dropped one run in the fourth, another in the fifth and two more in the sixth to close out the 7-2 win.
NEXT UP
The Norse turn their full attention to championship season as they head to Youngstown State for the opening round of the Horizon League tournament on Wednesday, May 8. First pitch is set for noon ET at the YSU Softball Complex.
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.
