Michaela Jones hit a double in the fourth to cut the Northwestern lead in half. The RBI brought home pinch runner Caityln Cornwell and kept a runner on base as Maryland looked to climb out of an early two-run hole.
But that’s where the Terps’ offensive production ended. Coach Lauren Karn’s lineup failed to record another hit in the final three frames as they trailed by one run for the rest of the game.
Maryland fell to Northwestern, 2-1 on the road on Sunday. The loss, fuelled by a struggling offense, pushed the Terps’ losing streak to seven.
Maryland (17-24, 4-10 Big Ten) entered Sunday coming off of two losses against Northwestern. Friday’s 5-4 loss was tight, but the Wildcats offense squeaked through to hand the Terps their fifth straight loss.
[Maryland softball swept by Rutgers in doubleheader as losing streak extends to 4]
Maryland’s streak continued to Saturday, where it struggled in almost every facet of the game. Courtney Wyche and Keira Bucher combined to allow 12 runs in four innings and the Wildcats defeated the Terps by mercy rule, 12-1.
Northwestern continued to test Maryland and Wyche early on Sunday. Hannah Cady drove a pitch to center field over Jaeda McFarland’s shoulder in the bottom of the first. McFarland couldn’t track it down in time, as Cady reached second base with a two-RBI double.
The Wildcats loaded the bases, putting Wyche and the Terps on the verge of more danger with just one out. Then Wyche struck out Isabel Cunnea with a fastball and the next batter chopped the pitch straight back to Wyche, who fielded the ball to escape the jam.
The Terps struggled to piece hits together off of Wildcats pitcher Ashley Miller, leaving much of the game up to Maryland’s defense to keep its bats in the contest.
[Maryland softball falls to Illinois, 4-0, drops second straight Big Ten series]
Wyche faced another bases-loaded jam in the second. Starting with no outs, Wyche put down three batters to keep the Maryland deficit at two runs.
Wyche battled strong offensive stars from Northwestern. Lead-off hitter Kansas Robinson has reached base in every game this season for the Wildcats. Robinson went hitless in three at-bats on Sunday but kept her streak alive with a walk.
Wyche threw 130 pitches in six innings of work, frequently battling throughout the game. Northwestern left two or more batters on base in each of the first four innings, as Wyche continued to hold off the Wildcats.
After giving up three hits and two runs in the first, Wyche only allowed one hit for the rest of the game but walked eight batters. The first proved to be enough to give Northwestern their third and final win of the weekend series.
Wyche notched her 600th career strikeout in another strong outing, but Maryland’s lack of offensive production led to its seventh straight loss.
