The Purdue Northwest softball team battled in the first day of the UIS Invitiational but dropped two close games to host Illinois Springfield on Friday afternoon. The Pride fell in Game 1, 4-2, and then lost in a walk-off in Game 2, 5-4.

The Basics

• Records: Purdue Northwest (1-7), Illinois Springfield (7-7)
• Location: Spartan Sports Park  – Chatham, Illinois
• Attendance: 60

Game 1 
The Breakdown

• Sophomore Emma Fair (Greenwood, Ind./Center Grove) led the Pride with two hits and two RBIs.
• Sophomore Kylie Dugan (Buck Creek, Ind./William Henry Harrison) added two hits.
• Senior Darcy Barkauskas (St. John, Ind./Lake Central) and junior Amanda DeBoer (Dyer, Ind./Illiana Christian) each chipped in one hit.
• Freshman Rylan Gick (West Lafayette, Ind./William Henry Harrison) earned the start on the mound for the Pride and pitched all seven innings allowing four hits and four run while notching four strikeouts.
• Malia Bender led Illinois Springfield with one hit and two RBIs.
• Rosie Barlettie started in the circle for the Prairie Stars pitching all seven innings earning the win while allowing six hits, two runs, and striking out ten batters.
• Illinois Springfield started fast by scoring three runs in the first inning to grab a 3-0 lead.
• The Prairie Stars added another run in the third inning to go up 4-0.
• Purdue Northwest scored their first runs of the game in the sixth inning to cut their deficit to 4-2.
• The Pride wouldn't score anymore runs after that as the team fell short in the end after a last ditch effort, 4-2.

Game 2
The Breakdown

• Dugan and junior Grace Wilson (Plainfield, Ind./Plainfield) each led the Pride with two hits.
• Senior Myah Stuckey (Noblesville, Ind./Noblesville) and junior Olivia Hernandez (Aurora, Ill./Aurora Central Catholic) both added one hit and one RBI apiece.
• DeBoer chipped in another hit for Purdue Northwest.
• Freshman Abbey Bond (Saint John, Ind./Andrean) started in the circle for Pride and pitched the first four innings allowing two runs and one hit with two strikeouts.
• Junior Hailie Charmat (South Bend, Ind./John Adams) pitched the last two innings for Purdue Northwest allowing three runs with six hits notching two strikeouts.
• Four total players led Illinois Springfield with one hit and one RBI each.
• Addyson McClure started on the mound for the Prairie Stars and pitched the first 3.2 innings allowing five hits and three runs.
• Sydney Parra came on in relief for Illinois Springfield pitching the last 3.1 innings allowing only one run with two hits and seven strikeouts to record the win.
• The Pride grabbed the early lead in the second inning scoring a run to go up 1-0.
• UIS tied things up in the third inning, 1-1.
• Purdue Northwest regained the lead scoring two runs in the fourth inning to make it, 3-1.
• The Prairie Stars grabbed a run in the fourth to cut their deficit to 3-2.
• UIS tallied two runs in the fifth inning to take their first lead of the game, 4-3.
• The Pride tied the game up at 4-4 in the sixth inning after a pinch-hit RBI single from Hernandez.
• In the bottom of the seventh inning, the Prairie Stars walked the game off after an RBI triple to give them the win, 5-4.

Up Next

• The Pride now compete in Day 2 of the UIS Invitational when they take on Quincy on Saturday. March 1. Game 1 is slated for 12:00 PM CT and Game 2 is set for 2:00 PM CT in Chatham, Illinois at Spartan Sporks Park.