Youngstown, Ohio – Youngstown State scored four runs in the bottom of the fifth inning to rally to defeat Northern Kentucky, 11-9, in game two of a Senior Day doubleheader on Saturday at the Covelli Sports Complex.
The Penguins, who dropped the opener 8-5, improve to 29-14 overall and 15-3 in the Horizon League while the Norse fall to 18-17 overall and 11-7 in the league.
Northern Kentucky erased a 7-1 deficit after four innings with an eight-run fifth inning to take a 9-7 lead.
The Penguins answered with four runs in the bottom half to regain the lead. Conchetta Rinaldi and Macy Littler each singled to lead off the inning and move up a base on a ground out. Autumn Behlke's infield single down the first-base line plated Rinaldi, and after a walk to Sara Fessler, Lydia Wilkerson drove in Littler and Behlke to get the Penguins to give the Penguins a 10-9 lead.
Jillan Jakse's sacrifice fly scored Fessler from third with an insurance run.
Senior Devan Ryan, who started the game and pitched four innings, re-entered the contest with a runner on second and no outs in the top of the sixth and retired six straight batters to earn the save. In the sixth, she forced a fly out to left field, a pop out to second, and ground out to shortstop to get out of a jam.
In the top of the seventh, Ryan induced three straight ground balls to second to close out the win.
The Penguins jumped out to 6-0 lead after three innings by scoring one in first, two in second, and three in the third.
Jakse's plated Fessler in the bottom of the first to put the Penguins up, 1-0, and Behlke's second-inning two-run double down the left field line plated Littler and Niederkohr, who both singled.
Dean ripped a one-out double down the left-field line that scored pinch-runner Reese Campbell-Schaller and advanced to third on the throw. Imler singled to right field scoring pinch-runner Ashlyn Bishop, and Littler's double to left-center drove in Imler.
Northern Kentucky scored a run in the top of the fourth to cut the lead to 6-1, but the Penguins answered with one in the bottom half. Jakse's one-out double to right-center scored Wilkerson from first to regain a six-run lead.
In the opener, the Norse led 7-0 through four-and-a-half innings and Penguins could not recover.
Dean went 2-for-4 with a double, two runs scored, and two runs batted in while Rinaldi also had two hits and two RBIs. Niederkohr also posted a pair of singles for the Penguins.
Youngstown State continues its nine-game homestand with a doubleheader against Bucknell, Tuesday, April 23. First pitch is set for 2 p.m. at the Covelli Sports Complex.
