A hungry NIU softball team had no mercy for its weekend opponents.

The team went 4-0 after sweeping MAC foes Akron and Ohio in two games apiece at Mary M. Bell Field, with its last victory coming by the mercy rule as the team beat the Bobcats 8-0 in only six innings.

“It’s one step at a time,” said NIU head coach Lindsay Chouinard. “Four wins is wonderful, and four is what you hope for when you open the conference but it’s onto the next game. We told them at the end of the game that they did a great job hitting the ball, but that there are still things they need to work on. So, we will just keep practicing.”

The Huskies’ weekend started with a doubleheader against Akron on Friday, where the team picked up a 3-2 win, along with a 4-3 victory over the Zips.

While freshman pitcher Morgan Bittner grabbed her second consecutive win in the first game, fans were able to see a gut-wrenching, come-from-behind victory in the second.

Trailing 2-3 in the seventh inning, it was up to the Huskies’ offense to pull off the win. With two runners on base, starting pitcher Andrea Colosimo, who was relieved by freshman Joreigh Landers, ripped the ball down the first-base line to score Dani Thompson and tie the game 3-3.

With two outs and two runners on, senior Bailey Ouellette swung at the 2-2 pitch. Without a strike to spare, the senior delivered a walk-off line ball to right field to score Zoe Sinner and complete the sweep of Akron.

“Bailey had a great day,” Chouinard said. “She had four hits, including two big ones for big runs. That’s exactly what you want from your No. 4 hitter. That’s exactly what you want her to do.”

With two wins under their belts, the Huskies then moved on to a doubleheader with Ohio on Saturday. The games were originally scheduled a day apart, but with the fear of snowfall Saturday night, NIU prepared for four games in half as many days.

With the mercury dropping, NIU had to heat up their bats to battle back from a four-run deficit to take the first game 7-4. Down by three in the fifth inning with bases loaded, NIU started its attack. Colosimo started the scoring, driving in Dani Parrish on a fielder’s choice. With the bases still loaded, senior Emily Gooding converted at the plate with a base-clearing double to give her the lead they’d never lose. The second baseman ended the game going 2-3 with 3 RBI.

“At my first at-bat, coach said to me ‘I’m feeling it today with you,’ and I kind of took it and went with it,” Gooding said. “I hope we can keep this momentum going through conference games.”

The senior also saw success in the day’s second game, going 1-3 with another RBI. The game ended in an 8-0 mercy rule victory for her team.

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