TOLEDO, Ohio - The Toledo softball team took advantage of some late-inning heroics to pull out a 6-5 (8 inn.) triumph over Northern Illinois (21-21, 11-9 MAC) at a cold, wet Scott Park on Sunday afternoon. The victory also gave the Rockets (18-22) a second-straight series win and evened their record in conference play at 11-11.
Leah Munson hit her second homer of the day to tie the score at 5-5 in the bottom of the seventh, and
Aleah Marra delivered a walk-off single an inning later to give the Rockets the win. Munson and
Lauren Erickson led the Rockets with two hits apiece, with Erickson also hitting a homer.
Sophia Knight (7-8) picked up the victory for Toledo with two innings of hitless relief of
Erin Hunt. NIU's Danielle Stewart (9-9) allowed seven hits and six runs in a complete-game loss.
"At the beginning of the game we talked about our goal of being able to say that we are proud of how we played," Head Coach Jessica Bracamonte said. "I think it's safe to say that we accomplished our goal. We are extremely proud of the fight and resilience that was displayed from the beginning of the game until the very last pitch these last two games of the series. Two impressive come-from-behind wins through cold temps, rain, and snow against a tough team says a lot about our refusal to quit or go down without a fight and it paid off for us in a big way."
Toledo is set to travel to Athens, Ohio for a mid-week series at Ohio University this week. The Rockets and Bobcats will open their three-game series with a single game on Tuesday, April 25 followed by a doubleheader on Wednesday, April 26.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- Leah Munson gave the Rockets a 1-0 lead with a leadoff inside-the-park home run.
- Lauren Erickson's solo shot over the left-field fence in the second inning tacked onto UT's lead.
- NIU rallied to take the lead with a three-run third inning.
- Toledo answered immediately and evened the score at 3-3 on Aubrey Reed's sacrifice fly.
- The Huskies took another one-run lead in the top of the fifth, but Riley Mohr's double to right center knotted the score at 4-4 in the bottom of the frame.
- Lauren Walinski's double to right-center put NIU ahead 5-4 in the sixth.
- Munson's one-out homer to center field tied the game at 5-5 and sent the game to extra innings.
- Aleah Marra ended the game with a two-out walk-off single up the middle in the bottom of the eighth.