The game originally was scheduled for a noon CT start, but was pushed back to 3 p.m. earlier in the year to accommodate a live broadcast on BTN. While the Wildcats were able to switch to the last flight back to Chicago out of Omaha, it still necessitated that "drop dead" time -- something more commonly seen on getaway day at early-season tournaments. If that time is reached before the conclusion of the game, then the score reverts to the last full inning of play, creating an entirely new sense of urgency for the 'Cats.
After NU's rally in the top of the inning, the Huskers loaded the bases with no outs in the bottom of the seventh as the minutes ticked away. The next two batters hit pop ups on the infield against Northwestern's starter Kristen Wood (Trevor, Wis./Wilmot Union) before the next Husker stepped into the batter's box at 5:47 p.m. She drove a 1-0 pitch toward left-center that would have certainly tied the game, but NU shortstop Andrea Filler (Fort Wayne, Ind./Bishop Dwenger) left her feet and extended every inch of her 5-foot-10 frame to catch the ball on a dive, ending the game before everyone turned into pumpkins.
Northwestern (21-17, 9-5 Big Ten) now returns home for midweek Big Ten action when it hosts Illinois in a doubleheader live on BTN beginning at 2 p.m. CT Wednesday, April 22. The game will feature a free breakfast at the ballpark -- including a build-your-own-pancake bar! -- for all Northwestern students. Students should RSVP for the free meal here!
Nebraska falls to 25-19 overall on the year, 12-5 in the league with their loss on Sunday.
The first two games of this series featured outstanding defense from Nebraska, and that trend continued in the top of the first. Though Sabrina Rabin (St. Charles, Ill./St. Charles North) and Andrea DiPrima (Arlington Heights, Ill./Buffalo Grove) both drew walks to start the game, the Huskers turned a 5-4-3 double play on a hard-hit ball toward the hole to end the inning.
In the bottom of the first, Nebraska took a 1-0 lead on back-to-back leadoff triples against Kristen Wood. The Huskers then attempted a squeeze, but Wood's pitch went through the bat of the bunter and catcher Sammy Nettling (Tucson, Ariz./Canyon del Oro) quickly fired behind the runner at third to erase her from scoring position.
The Huskers turned a pair of walks in the bottom of the third into two more runs on two-out singles, extending their lead to 3-0.
After lining out all over the field in the series, Filler finally found a way to get a hit against the Nebraska defense: leave the yard! Leading off the top of the fourth, Filler smashed a solo home run dead into the teeth of a 27 mph sustained wind to put the Wildcats on the board, 3-1. The shot was Filler's ninth of the year and her 15th as a Wildcat.
Nebraska loaded the bases with two outs in the bottom of the fourth, but Wood was able to escape the threat unscathed and allow NU to pull closer in the fifth. With one out, Fran Strub (Coralville, Iowa/Clear Creek Amana) shot a single through the left side of the infield and remained at first with two outs. DiPrima then drove a pitch to left that fell just beyond the fielder's dive for a run-scoring triple that made it a 3-2 game.
The Wildcats put together a two-out rally in the top of the sixth, beginning with an Olivia Duehr (Antioch, Ill./Antioch) single to left before Brooke Marquez (Garden Grove, Calif./Pacifica) singled to push pinch runner Abbey Boyd (Wilmette, Ill./New Trier) to second. The next batter hit a ball up the middle, but Nebraska was positioned perfectly to get the force at second and keep its one-run lead over NU.
Wood earned a hard-fought 1-2-3 bottom of the sixth to keep her team within a run entering the top of the seventh. Strub started that seventh by slapping a ball to the third baseman, who bobbled it long enough for the speedy junior to be safe at first on the error. Rabin then smashed a ball off that same fielder's glove for her second single of the game, pushing Strub up to second with no outs.
DiPrima then delivered the lead to the Wildcats. The senior smashed the 38th double of her Northwestern career into the left-center field gap to bring both Strub and Rabin home and give NU a 4-3 lead. The double tied DiPrima with Jamie Dotson (2003-06) and Erin Jancic (1999-2002) for fourth in NU history.
Marissa Panko (Naperville, Ill./Benet Academy) entered to pinch run for DiPrima, motoring around to score herself when Filler doubled off the very top of the fence center, pushing NU's lead to 5-3 heading to the bottom of the seventh.
Fighting the Huskers and the clock, Wood walked the Nos. 2 and 3 batters in the Huskers order before a hit batter loaded the bases with no outs. She then got the next two batters to pop out on the infield to set the stage for Filler's heroics at short.
Wood (10-7) picked up the complete-game victory, allowing three runs on six hits and eight walks with a strikeout. DiPrima had a three-RBI day with a double and a triple, Filler drove in two with a homer and a double and Rabin went 2-for-3 to finish the series 8-for-10 in the three games.
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