Softball scores 31 runs, bangs out 33 hits in OAC sweep at Wilmington

By Tim Glon

WILMINGTON -- Ohio Northern scored 31 runs and banged out 33 base hits in a softball double header sweep at Wilmington Tuesday afternoon at the Wilmington Softball Field.

The Polar Bears improve to 11-11 overall and are 4-2 in Ohio Athletic Conference play, while the Quakers fall to 9-12, 0-4.

Northern won the opener 8-1 and took the nightcap in wild fashion 23-15.

Junior Adriana Sikora went 4-for-4 with two runs and her OAC-leading 10th home run of the season to lead the Ohio Northern offense in Game 1.

Senior Carly McKenzie went 4-for-5 with a grand slam and an impressive 8 RBI to lead an offensive outburst that saw all eight starters collect at least one base hit in Game 2.

In the opener, junior Kelly Sheridan went 3-for-4 with two RBI, two runs and two stolen bases and senior Christin Miller was 2-for-4 with two RBI for Ohio Northern.

In the circle, freshman Kirsten Burden threw a complete-game 4-hitter, striking out four, to earn the win.

Northern scored three times in the top of the fifth to expand a 4-1 lead into a 7-1 advantage.

The nightcap was a slugfest, with the two teams combining for 38 runs and 42 base hits.

Sikora stayed hot at the plate, going 3-for-4 with five runs scored. Junior Jamie Westenkirchner was 3-for-5 with four RBI, senior Bree Hiteshew was 3-for-4 with a home run, four tuns scored and three RBI and Miller was 3-for-4 at the plate for ONU.

The Polar Bears scored in every inning and led 19-6 entering the bottom of the fifth.

WC got back into the game with a 7-run fifth frame, but ONU got a run in the sixth and three more in the top of the seventh to put the game away.

Burden (3-5) earned the win, her second of the day and third straight for Ohio Northern, in 5.0 innings of work.

Sikora, who leads the OAC in batting average, home runs and RBI, ended the day 7-for-8 with seven runs scored and two RBI.

The 23 runs scored marked the 21st time that an Ohio Northern softball team had scored 20 or more runs in its 47-year history.

It was not close to the school record though, as ONU beat Wittenberg 48-4 in 1970.

The Polar Bears will return to action on Saturday with an OAC double header at John Carroll.