ROSEMONT, Ill. – Purdue Northwest Softball is off to its best start to a season through the first six games in the DII era after Sunday's 4-3 walk-off win over Hillsdale. The Pride finished their strong showing over the opening weekend with a 5-1 record at the DII Midwest Region Crossover Dome Invitational. PNW previously started 4-2 in each of its first two seasons of DII competition in 2018 and 2019.
Trailing 3-2 after giving up a two-run lead, PNW scored twice in its final at-bat to pull out the dramatic comeback against the Chargers in the bottom of the seventh.
Junior shortstop
Jocey Gault (West Lafayette, Ind./Harrison) delivered the game-winning hit with a sharp single through the left side. The Pride tied the game after
Selena Michko (Dyer, Ind./Lake Central) drew a one-out walk and pinch-runner
Kara Aloisio (North Aurora, Ill./Yorkville) scored all the way from first on
Briana Poehler's (Mattoon, Ill./Mattoon) hit to left field. A costly error from the left fielder when trying to play the ball on a hop allowed Aloisio to round the bases and Poehler to reach third.
Gault was one of four players with two hits on the day for the Pride, going 2 for 4 with two RBIs. The three others included Poehler (2-4),
Allison Arnold (Tucson, Ariz./Naperville North) (2-4) and
Myah Stuckey (Noblesville, Ind./Noblesville) (2-3).
Gabby Paliska (Palos Park, Ill./Lincoln-Way East (Wisconsin-Green Bay)) earned the complete-game victory, her first in a PNW uniform, to improve to 2-0. The sophomore right-hander struck out six while surrendering two earned runs on six hits.
PNW got on the board first with a pair of runs in the third. The middle of the lineup produced three consecutive hits as Poehler's single to center brought in Arnold and Gault's RBI ground out plated Michko.
After the Pride stranded a pair of runners in the fourth inning, Hillsdale responded with two runs to tie the game in the fifth. The Chargers recorded back-to-back, two-out hits including a double down the left field line to make the score 2-2.
Then, Hillsdale used more two-out magic in the sixth after a double and fielding error allowed the Chargers to take their first lead of the game, 3-2. PNW left two more aboard in the home half of the sixth after
Ashley Bravo (Chicago, Ill./Whitney Young) was robbed of extra bases on a diving catch at third base.
Sunday morning's contest was the first-ever meeting between the two teams. Hillsdale (2-6) was led by Oliver Latimer (2 for 3, 2B) and Madison Rathbun (1 for 4, 2B, 2 RBI). Starting pitcher Joni Russell fell to 2-2 after giving up two earned runs on 11 hits with eight strikeouts.
UP NEXT
PNW will have nearly two weeks off before returning to action at The Spring Games, hosted in Florida. The Pride will face a 12-game schedule against non-conference Division II opponents.
FOLLOW THE PRIDE
For all the latest information on Purdue Northwest Softball, please visit PNWathletics.com. For up-to-the-minute updates, follow the Pride (@pnwathletics / @PNWSoftball) on Twitter. You can also find the Pride on Instagram, Facebook and YouTube
