Northwestern’s (27-19, 14-7 B1G) win streak has now reached double digits as the Wildcats left Bittinger Stadium in West Lafayette with a three-game series sweep of Purdue (32-18, 9-12 B1G) this weekend, thanks to the heroics of first-year pitcher Marina Mason.
Mason pitched in two of the three games this weekend, delivering a complete game in both that effectively won Northwestern the series and grew her season record to 16-8. Her command of the circle and ability to bounce back from rough patches
was the anchoring factor for the Wildcats in a pivotal road series as they prepare for the Big Ten Tournament in a week and a half.
Game 1: Northwestern 8, Purdue 7
Friday’s game was the most demanding of the three for Mason. Northwestern quickly found itself in a 6-0 hole behind a five-run Boilermaker swing in the second inning, highlighted by a Haley Painter three-run homer. Despite the rough start, head coach Kate Drohan stuck with the first-year for all seven innings. Mason threw 154 pitches in the victory.
It was by no means a sharp outing for her standards — the Boilermakers had nine hits and drew four walks — but she was resilient when it mattered most, stranding runners and shutting down Purdue over the final two innings to give the offense time to rally. After NU’s scoring in the second, third and sixth, junior catcher Emma Raye’s three-run homer in the top of the seventh was enough to surge the Wildcats ahead late and earned Mason her 15th win of the season.
Game 2: Northwestern 11, Purdue 4
Saturday’s game was full of offense for the ‘Cats, but the star of the show was Renae Cunningham who entered for relief on behalf of Riley Grudzielanek after a rough first inning where she allowed four runs on three hits and two walks without recording a single out. Cunningham trotted out to record all 21 outs with just one hit allowed en route to the 11-4 blowout. The seven inning outing for the junior was the first of her career, completed in just under 70 pitches.
Northwestern’s offense took care of the rest. Sophomore center fielder Kaylie Avvisato went 4-for-5 including a solo home run and an RBI double, while senior infielder Bridget Donahey cleared the fence twice and tied a career-high with four runs batted in, putting the series out of reach by the fifth inning. Donahey also tied a single-game program record with 10 total bases on the day. Kelsey Nader also added three hits and an RBI as the Wildcats finished the day with 13 hits altogether.
Game 3: Northwestern 1, Purdue 0
Just two days removed from her shaky start Friday, Mason appeared to be a completely different pitcher. The first-year was untouchable, striking out 11 batters in her second complete game of the weekend (and 10th of her career), allowing just three hits and one walk in the low-scoring 1-0 win in favor of the ‘Cats. At one point, Mason worked her way out of a bases-loaded jam in the fifth inning when, forcing a fielder’s choice to put an end to the threat.
Fans attending the game had to wait a while to see a runner round the bases, but got their wish in the top of the seventh. An Avvisato leadoff single, followed by a single by Raye, a sacrifice bunt off the bat of senior outfielder Kansas Robinson, a Donahey walk and finally a Nader sacrifice fly scored the sole run of the contest. Mason held off any last-ditch Purdue comeback efforts, finishing off the 99-pitch day by striking out Purdue’s Ashlynn Campbell for the win.
The Wildcats return home for their final home series to play host to Minnesota at The Ballpark at Rosemont, starting on Friday, May 1, at 1 p.m. CT on B1G+.
