Kent State Splits Doubleheader at NIU

Saturday, March 30

DeKalb, Ill.

2:00 p.m.

Kent State University

18-9, 3-2

Northern Illinois

8-19, 2-6

Kent State

NIU

Photo by: Elsye Jones

3/30/2024 7:52:00 PM | Softball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2

DEKALB, Ill. – Kent State evened the series with a 5-3 victory in the first game of a doubleheader on Saturday before dropping the rubber match to host Northern Illinois, 5-2.

The Golden Flashes (18-10, 4-2 MAC) outhit the Huskies 13-10 on the day. Senior Emily Lippe reached base four times over the two games and joined the 100-hit club with a single down the left field line in the top of the first inning of the opener. Lippe then crushed a pitch off the scoreboard in her next plate appearance to become the sixth player in program history with 30 career home runs.

Game 1: Kent State 5, Northern Illinois 3
The Golden Flashes made the Huskies pay for an error in the top of the third inning, as Emily Lippe's two-run homer made it a 2-0 game.

Northern Illinois hit a two-run shot of its own to tie it in the bottom half of the inning and went ahead 3-2 with a run in the bottom of the fourth.

Two-out hits allowed Kent State to retake the lead in the top of the fifth. Julia Mazanec tied it with a double and Brynn Libler followed with another double, scoring Mazanec and Lippe.

Ella Esterby then entered the circle and retired the first seven batters she faced. Esterby only allowed one batter to reach via walk and had one strikeout over three innings to earn her first career save. Megan Nuechterlein (11-4) tossed the first four innings and had two strikeouts.

Game 2: Northern Illinois 5, Kent State 2
Kent State left the bases loaded in the top of the first inning and the Huskies scored three in the bottom half.

Julia Mazanec and Brynn Libler provided key two-out hits to get the Golden Flashes within 3-2. In the top of the third, Mazanec lined a double and then scored on a single through the right side by Libler to get Kent State on the board. Two innings later, the duo provided back-to-back singles, and Mazanec scored on a single by Carley Penner.

The Huskies added two runs in the bottom of the fifth and the Flashes were retired in order in the sixth and seventh.

Macy Irelan recorded six strikeouts over 4.2 innings of a relief appearance. Megan Nuechterlein retired all three batters she faced in the bottom of the sixth.

On Deck for the Flashes
Kent State will be back in action at Devine Diamond on Tuesday, April 2, hosting Ohio for a Mid-American Conference doubleheader that is scheduled for 1 p.m.

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