PALM SPRINGS, Calif. – The No. 8 Washington Huskies (8-2) defeat the Northwestern Wildcats (1-9), 6-3, on Friday at the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic. A hot fifth inning inked four runs for the Purple and Gold, including a home run from Casey Stangel.
An early homerun for the Wildcats didn't faze the Huskies as they responded with six hits to get the 6-3 win. Freshman Samantha Manti earned her first start and complete game of her career. She tossed 8 strikeouts and allowed only four hits.
Northwestern put a tally on the board quickly with a solo home run from pitcher Kenzie Ellis.
In the bottom of the third inning the Huskies caught a break after an error by the Wildcats' shortstop. With two outs, Taylor Van Zee hit a ground ball and reached first on the fielding error. Ali Aguilar and Kirstyn Thomas were plated on the play to make the score 2-1.
The fifth inning brought in four runs for the Huskies. Thomas led off with a double into centerfield and was plated after an RBI single from Kelly Burdick. The centerfielder was then run in after an RBI single hit by Aguilar. Stangel followed up with a two-run home run to extend the Huskies' lead to 6-1.
With bases loaded and two outs in the bottom of the sixth, Northwestern third baseman Morgan Nelson hit a ground ball up the middle that brought in two runners. The Husky defense fought off the pressing offense for the final out, finishing the top of the frame at 6-3, Huskies.
The squad will conclude their play at Mary Nutter tomorrow in a double header against Texas at 9 a.m. PT and UC Santa Barbara at 11:30 a.m. PT. Live stats will be available at GoHuskies.com and live stream will be provided by FloSoftball.com ($).