PALO ALTO, Calif. – Danielle Williams tossed another gem in the circle to cap off a phenomenal weekend for the Northwestern pitching staff as the Wildcats rolled to a 4-0 win over Montana in their final game at the Stanford Invitational.
Northwestern's pitchers finished the weekend with a combined 0.26 ERA (1 ER/27.0 IP) along with 38 strikeouts in four games. Kaley Winegarner got the 'Cats off to a strong start against Cal Poly on Friday by allowing just one earned run in 3.1 innings while stranding four runners on base. Kenna Wilkey came in to finish the game off, retiring all 11 batters she faced, and then tossed a two-hit gem against North Dakota State on Saturday while striking out a season-high 10 batters.
Today, Williams extended the #B1GCats scoreless streak to 19.1 innings as she allowed just four base runners all game and struck out 12 batters for her seventh complete game and fourth shutout this season. She improves to 10-2 on the year while lowering her season ERA to 0.81 (8 ER/69.1 IP).
This marks the first time Northwestern has had pitchers finish with 10 or more strikeouts in consecutive games since 2015, when Kristen Wood and Amy Letourneau did so in four-consecutive games from March 24-April 3.
At the plate, six different players accounted for the Wildcats' 10 hits on the afternoon, four of which went for extra bases. Nikki Cuchran led the way, notching her team-high sixth multi-hit game as she finished 3-for-3 with a double, an RBI and a run scored. The first-year from Downers Grove, Ill. finished the weekend with a team-high six hits, batting .545 (6-for-11) with two RBI and two runs scored.
The 'Cats struck first in the bottom of the third inning after four-straight players reached base with two outs. Skyler Shellmyer started the rally off with a single through the left side and immediately stole second to get into scoring position. After Lily Novak drew a walk to keep the inning alive, Maeve Nelson came through with an RBI-single up the middle to put Northwestern up, 1-0. Cuchran helped add to the lead on the next at-bat as she beat out an infield pop up that dropped at the feet of the second baseman and scored Novak.
In the fourth inning, Rachel Lewis continued to heat up at the plate as she blasted a solo homer over the left field fence–her second-straight game with a homer and her fourth on the season. Lewis collected another extra-base hit in the sixth inning with a double down the left field line and finished the weekend with an .833 slugging percentage and four RBI, tied for a team-high.
Northwestern added one more in the fifth inning after putting together another two-out rally. Cuchran hit a double to right field for her third hit on the day and, the next at-bat, Jordyn Rudd hit a double of her own to drive in Cuchran and extend the Wildcats' lead to 4-0. All-in-all, 11 of the 17 runs Northwestern scored over the weekend came with two outs.
Both Shellmyer and Maeve Nelson recorded a hit in each of the Wildcats' four games over the weekend, with Shellmyer batting .455 (5-for-11) with a run scored while Nelson hit .364 (4-for-11) with two RBI and three runs scored.
Northwestern improves to 14-4 on the season, tied for its best start since 2004 and for the best start since Kate Drohan took over as head coach in 2002. The Wildcats will return to action next weekend when they travel to Norman, Okla. to play five games.
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Northwestern's pitchers finished the weekend with a combined 0.26 ERA (1 ER/27.0 IP) along with 38 strikeouts in four games. Kaley Winegarner got the 'Cats off to a strong start against Cal Poly on Friday by allowing just one earned run in 3.1 innings while stranding four runners on base. Kenna Wilkey came in to finish the game off, retiring all 11 batters she faced, and then tossed a two-hit gem against North Dakota State on Saturday while striking out a season-high 10 batters.
Today, Williams extended the #B1GCats scoreless streak to 19.1 innings as she allowed just four base runners all game and struck out 12 batters for her seventh complete game and fourth shutout this season. She improves to 10-2 on the year while lowering her season ERA to 0.81 (8 ER/69.1 IP).
This marks the first time Northwestern has had pitchers finish with 10 or more strikeouts in consecutive games since 2015, when Kristen Wood and Amy Letourneau did so in four-consecutive games from March 24-April 3.
At the plate, six different players accounted for the Wildcats' 10 hits on the afternoon, four of which went for extra bases. Nikki Cuchran led the way, notching her team-high sixth multi-hit game as she finished 3-for-3 with a double, an RBI and a run scored. The first-year from Downers Grove, Ill. finished the weekend with a team-high six hits, batting .545 (6-for-11) with two RBI and two runs scored.
The 'Cats struck first in the bottom of the third inning after four-straight players reached base with two outs. Skyler Shellmyer started the rally off with a single through the left side and immediately stole second to get into scoring position. After Lily Novak drew a walk to keep the inning alive, Maeve Nelson came through with an RBI-single up the middle to put Northwestern up, 1-0. Cuchran helped add to the lead on the next at-bat as she beat out an infield pop up that dropped at the feet of the second baseman and scored Novak.
In the fourth inning, Rachel Lewis continued to heat up at the plate as she blasted a solo homer over the left field fence–her second-straight game with a homer and her fourth on the season. Lewis collected another extra-base hit in the sixth inning with a double down the left field line and finished the weekend with an .833 slugging percentage and four RBI, tied for a team-high.
Northwestern added one more in the fifth inning after putting together another two-out rally. Cuchran hit a double to right field for her third hit on the day and, the next at-bat, Jordyn Rudd hit a double of her own to drive in Cuchran and extend the Wildcats' lead to 4-0. All-in-all, 11 of the 17 runs Northwestern scored over the weekend came with two outs.
Both Shellmyer and Maeve Nelson recorded a hit in each of the Wildcats' four games over the weekend, with Shellmyer batting .455 (5-for-11) with a run scored while Nelson hit .364 (4-for-11) with two RBI and three runs scored.
Northwestern improves to 14-4 on the season, tied for its best start since 2004 and for the best start since Kate Drohan took over as head coach in 2002. The Wildcats will return to action next weekend when they travel to Norman, Okla. to play five games.