CLEMSON, S.C. – The University of Notre Dame softball team dropped both ends of its twinbill Saturday at Clemson’s McWhorter Stadium. The Fighting Irish fell to #13/11 Northwestern 2-0 in the morning, and dropped a 6-5 extra inning contest to the Ohio State Buckeyes to end the day. The Irish are now 5-3 on the season.
Against the Wildcats, Micaela Kastor got the start in the circle. The freshman threw 2.0 innings, allowed three hits and walked four. Payton Tidd came on in relief and suffered the loss. Tidd threw 4.0 innings, scattered four hits, two earned runs and struck out six.
The Irish offense never got on track in the first game, finishing with three hits. Karina Gaskins connected with a double as Jane Kronenberger and Lexi Orozco added the other two hits for Notre Dame.
Shannon Becker started in the circle against the Buckeyes. Becker threw 5.2 innings, allowing four hits and four earned runs to go with four strikeouts. Tidd suffered the loss, throwing the final 3.0 innings, allowing a pair of earned runs to go with a strikeout.
The offense added nine hits in the nightcap, with the majority coming from the top of the order. Carlli Kloss, Kronenberger and Rachel Allen all finished with two hits. Allen added a team-best two RBI, and hit her first home run of the season in the loss. Kloss added an RBI double, and Mickey Winchell also drove in a run with a single.
How It Happened – Northwestern
After exchanging zeroes for the first five innings, Northwestern crossed home plate in the bottom of the fifth inning. A lead-off single moved up on a ground out and a strikeout had a runner on second with two outs. A double brought the first run of the game in, followed by a single to center to extend the Wildcat lead to 2-0 after five.
Notre Dame put runners on in five of the seven innings but couldn’t bring any home.
How It Happened – Ohio State
The Irish got on the board first in the second inning. With two outs, the Irish rallied to score a pair. Marquez was hit by a pitch and an error put runners on the corners. Winchell delivered with a single back at the pitcher to score one, and Kloss doubled to left to bring in another.
Notre Dame added solo runs in the third and fourth innings to provide some cushion. Kronenberger led off the third with a double and came around to score when an Allen singled to left. A one-out walk from Winchell and a ground ball got her into scoring position in the fourth. Gaskins knocked a single to right to bring her in and extend the lead to 4-0.
The Buckeyes answered in the bottom of the fourth, scoring two. A lead-off single and a walk put two on for Meggie Otte. Otte tripled to right center to score two before Becker extinguished the threat.
Allen got a run back in the fifth for Notre Dame, hitting a solo home run.
Ohio State brought it to a one-run game in the sixth inning. A two-out rally started with a walk and an RBI double. Two walks sandwiched an infield hit to cut the Irish lead to 5-4 with an inning remaining.
The Buckeyes knotted the game in the bottom of the seventh to force extra innings. A lead-off double came around on a double to center to knot the game at five.
It took until the bottom of the ninth for the game-winning run to cross home. A hit batter reached and a fielder’s choice kept a runner on first. A double to the wall in the left field corner allowed the run to score from first and the Buckeyes took the game, 6-5.
Up Next
Notre Dame returns to McWhorter Stadium tomorrow morning for its final game of the ACC/B1G Challenge. The