Softball Earns Convincing Wins To Start G-MAC Play, Taking Two From Lake Erie

OVERVIEW – Lake Erie

SCORES: Northwood 9, Lake Erie 1 / Northwood 8, Lake Erie 0

RECORDS: Northwood (8-10, 2-0 G-MAC), Lake Erie (1-13, 0-2 G-MAC)

LOCATION: Fisher Stadium – Midland, Mich.

RECAP: Northwood softball opened conference play with a convincing sweep of Lake Erie on Saturday afternoon (March 21) at Fisher Stadium. The Timberwolves used quick offense in both games, along with strong pitching performances to secure two mercy-rule victories, 9-1 and 8-0.

GAME ONE HIGHLIGHTS

• Northwood got on the board in the second inning when Brittany Steimel drove in Jenna Kowalski with an RBI groundout to take a 1-0 lead.
• After the game was tied in the fourth, Ashlyn Lundquist tripled to right center, scoring Kowalski, before Steimel followed with a two-run home run to center to give Northwood a 4-1 advantage. This was Steimel's first home run of the year.
• In the fifth inning, Ashley Ziel doubled to left field, driving in a run while another scored on a mistaken throw.
• Later in the inning, Lundquist delivered a two-run double to left center, pushing the advantage to 8-1.
• Northwood added its final run when Lundquist scored on a wild pitch, sealing the 9-1 run-rule victory.

GAME ONE STATS

• Runs/Hits/Errors: Northwood 9/11/1, Lake Erie 1/3/2
• Runners left on base: Northwood 2, Lake Erie 4
• Winning Pitcher – Kamden Binney (5-4) – 5.0 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 2 K
• Losing Pitcher – Addison Nugent (0-2) – 3.1 IP, 5 H, 4 R, 4 ER

TOP NU PERFORMERS

• Jenna Kowalski: 3-3, 3 R
• Ashlyn Lundquist: 2-3, 2 R, 3 RBI, 3B, 2B
• Brittany Steimel: 2-3, R, HR, 3 RBI
• Ashley Ziel: 2-3, 2 R, RBI, 2B

GAME TWO HIGHLIGHTS

• Northwood struck first in the opening inning as Brinley Eckerman scored on an RBI single up the middle by Ashley Ziel.
• The Timberwolves extended the lead in the second when Eckerman delivered a bases-clearing double to right field, driving in three runs to make it 4-0.
• In the fourth inning, Ziel came through again with an RBI double to right field, scoring Delanie Gale to push the lead to 5-0.
• Northwood added three more runs in the fifth, beginning with Hali Lenartowicz driving in a run with a single to center field.
• Carney Salo followed with an RBI single up the middle, and Eckerman walked it off with another RBI double to right center, sealing the 8-0 victory in five innings.

GAME TWO STATS

• Runs/Hits/Errors: Northwood 8/14/0, Lake Erie 0/1/1
• Runners left on base: Northwood 4, Lake Erie 1
• Winning Pitcher – Dalaney Gage (2-3) – 5.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 3 K
• Losing Pitcher – Lily Turkowski (1-3) – 4.0 IP, 12 H, 8 R, 8 ER

TOP NU PERFORMERS

• Brinley Eckerman: 3-4, R, 4 RBI, 3 2B
• Ashley Ziel: 2-3, 2 RBI, 2B
• Gage Lambert: 2-3, R, 2B
• Ella Wagner: 2-3
• Carney Salo: 1-2, R, RBI
• Delanie Gale: 1-3, 2B, R

NORTHWOOD NOTES AND CAREER MARKS TRACKER

• Several Timberwolves continue to climb the Northwood softball record books during the 2026 season. With her home run in game one versus Lake Erie, Brittany Steimel tied Sydni Pauley (2014-18) for third on Northwood's career home run list with 22.

UP NEXT

• Northwood continues conference play with a home doubleheader versus Hillsdale on Tuesday (March 24). The doubleheader is set to start at 2 p.m. at Fisher Stadium in Midland.