Softball Sweeps Tiffin - 5-3 and 8-0

MIDLAND, MICH. – The Northwood University softball team picked up a doubleheader sweep over Tiffin Tuesday afternoon (April 22). The Timberwolves picked up a dramatic 5-3 walk-off win in 11 innings in game one before posting an 8-0 victory in game two.

Northwood has now won four straight and eight of their last nine games to improve to 24-12 overall, 15-5 in the GLIAC.

Game one was a pitcher's duel for the majority of the game. Tiffin took a 1-0 lead in the third inning and that lead would remain all the way until there were two outs in the bottom of the seventh inning.  NU was down to its final out when senior Natalie Lampman (Madison Heights, Mich./Bishop Foley) tied the game with a single to send the game to extra innings tied at 1-1. Both teams had chances to score in extra innings, but neither team broke through until the 11^th. Tiffin plated a pair of runs in the top of the 11th to go up 3-1, but Northwood responded in the bottom of the inning. Lindsay Obremski (DuBois, Pa.) had an RBI double to cut the lead to 3-2, but the biggest hit of the game belonged to sophomore outfielder Jessica Tostrud (Kenosha, Wisc./Mary D. Bradford). With two runners on base, she lined the 2-1 pitch over the right field fence to give Northwood a walk-off victory. Tostrud had a pair of hits and three RBIs to lead the way for Northwood. Ashley Lynn (Garden City, Mich.) and Malinda Smith (Saginaw, Mich./Swan Valley) each added two hits. Maddison Sebald (Bay City, Mich./Western) pitched well despite getting a no-decision, allowing one run in nine innings of work. Casey Brown (Hudson, Ohio) pitched the final two innings to pick up her eighth win of the season.

Northwood was the better team from the start of game two and kept the pressure on Tiffin the rest of the way. NU scored in six of the seven innings of the game and had 14 hits. NU put two on the board in the first on run-scoring singles by Obremski and Sam Zaborowski (Taylor, Mich./Cabrini). Stacey Klonowski (Canton, Mich./Plymouth) made it 3-0 in the second on an RBI double. Lampman extended the advantage to four runs the following inning on a single, which was followed in the fifth inning by a Klonowski squeeze bunt to put the Timberwolves on top 5-0. Tostrud then got her fourth RBI of the day on a single in the sixth to put NU on top 6-0. Klonowski rounded out the scoring in the final inning with a two-run double.  Lynn finished game two 4-5 with four runs scored, while Klonowski went 2-2 with four RBIs. Smith and Brittany Merner (Salon, Ohio) went 2-4 with two runs scored. Freshman Vanessa Ewing (Dundee, Mich.) had one of her best starts of her career, allowing three hits while striking out nine in five innings.

The Timberwolves will travel to Wayne State Friday (April 25). The doubleheader will get under way at 3:30 p.m.