Feb. 12, 2011
Box Score
Site: Tempe, Ariz. (Tempe Sports Complex)
Score: No. 23 Oklahoma State 5, Northwestern 4 (10)
Records: NU (2-2), Oklahoma State (3-1)
Next NU Event: Feb. 13, 2011 -- vs. North Texas (Kajikawa Classic), 9 a.m. CT
TEMPE, Ariz. -- Northwestern and No. 23 Oklahoma State battled back-and-forth late into the Arizona night Saturday at the Kajikawa Classic, matching each other run-for-run until the Cowgirls pulled out a 5-4 victory in 10 innings.
The loss drops Northwestern to 2-2 overall on the season while Oklahoma State improves to 3-1 with its win.
Northwestern put together a rally right away in the top of the first inning. Emily Allard (Antioch, Calif./Deer Valley) led off with a solid single back through the middle, then Kristin Scharkey (Yorba Linda, Calif./Esperanza) drew a walk to put a pair of runners on with no outs. The threat stalled quickly, however.
The leadoff Oklahoma State batter battled NU starter Jessica Smith (Encinitas, Calif./La Costa Canyon) through a 14-pitch at-bat, eventually working the walk. After a fielder's choice groundout, Allard turned a great 6-3 inning-ending double play by fielding a ball up the middle while standing on second base.
In the bottom of the second, the Cowgirls got a leadoff double followed by a single to notch an early 1-0 lead.
Northwestern struck back in the top of the third. Allard beat a one-out infield single to first before moving to second on a Scharkey sacrifice. Adrienne Monka (Rancho Cucamonga, Calif./Rancho Cucamonga) made the other bases a formality for Allard when she launched a ball over the fence in left-center to stake the Wildcats to a 2-1 lead. The blast was Monka's second of the season and the 33rd of her career, tying her with current senior Michelle Batts (Bloomingdale, Ill./Glenbard North) for sixth in program history.
In the Oklahoma State portion of the fourth, the Cowgirls got runners to first and second with no outs, but Northwestern eliminated the lead runner three-straight times to end the inning still on top, 2-1.
In the bottom of the fifth, Oklahoma State did succeed in knotting the game when a one-out error came around to score on a double. Later on, with two outs and a runner on second, an infield single appeared bound for center field, but Allard showed tremendous range to cut it off behind the second-base bag and hold the runner at third. The inning ended one pitch later with the score still tied.
Both teams went down quietly in the sixth, then both got a single runner to first in the seventh but no runs were forthcoming and the game went into extra innings with the international tiebreak rule in effect. In ITB play, a runner begins each half inning on second base to enhance scoring opportunities.
In the NU half of the eighth, Sammy Albanese (Belmont, Calif./Castilleja) entered to pinch run as the ITB runner at second. Marisa Bast (Orange, Calif./Villa Park) successfully sacrificed her to third, then Batts lofted a fly ball into medium center field that was just deep enough to allow Albanese to slide in safely and give NU a 3-2 lead.
Oklahoma State's ITB runner moved to third on a wild pitch on the first pitch of its half of the eighth, then came home when the batter laced a double just inside the third-base bag. A sacrifice moved that runner to third with one down, then Smith got a huge backwards K for out number two. The third out of the inning was just a thing of beauty. After hitting multiple 200-foot foul balls to left, the Cowgirl at the plate drilled a ball headed for the left-side hole on a hoverboard. Robin Thompson (Detroit, Mich./Martin Luther King) at third dove left with reflexes faster than a cat to stick it, then rose to her feet and fired to first to send the game to the ninth.
Kelly Quinn (Northbrook, Ill./Glenbrook North) began the ninth on second for NU, immediately scampering home when the throw on a Thompson bunt sailed into right field. Thompson moved to second on the error, then to third on an Allard sacrifice, but she stayed there with Northwestern on top 4-3 going into the bottom of the ninth.
Oklahoma State played textbook ball in its half of the ninth as well, sacrificing the ITB runner to third before driving her home on a bouncing ball that found its way into center for a single. Another Smith strikeout and a weak dribbler to Monka at first ended the inning with the score 4-4 and sent the game to the 10th.
NU moved its runner to third in the top of the 10th with the first out of the frame, but were unable to drive her home. In the bottom of the 10th, the Wildcats intentionally walked the first Cowgirl to set up a force at third. A wild pitch during an extended at-bat led to NU intentionally walking that batter as well to load the bases with no outs. The next batter hit a sacrifice fly to end the game.
Smith (0-2) took the loss though she largely pitched very well in the game. She allowed five runs though just one was earned, scattering nine hits and four walks against three strikeouts.
Northwestern returns to action at 9 a.m. tomorrow, Sunday, Feb. 13, against North Texas on getaway day at the Kajikawa Classic.
Be the first to know what's going on with the 'Cats -- Follow @NU_Sports on Twitter, become a fan of Northwestern Athletics on Facebook! and subscribe to the NU Sports Express e-newsletter to receive the latest news, schedule updates and video and to interact with NU. For more information on following specific Northwestern teams online, visit our Social Media page!