ALVA, Okla. – Northwestern Softball played host to Great American Conference rivals Southwestern Oklahoma State on Wednesday, splitting a doubleheader with the Bulldogs at the Alva Rec Complex. The Rangers found themselves on both ends of the run rule, dominating game one 11-3 in five innings before falling 14-6 to SWOSU in six innings in the nightcap.

Game 1
Battling weather and tough field conditions all week long, the Lady Rangers finally got to play against GAC rival Southwestern on a windy day in Alva. Madison Garza was in the circle for the black-and-red and Jill Webb was depending on her for yet another quality start. But the junior slinger ran into some trouble in the early going, surrendering three runs to the Bulldogs in the top of the 1^st. Three straight walks to lead off the game led to a double by Taya Haney that broke the inning wide open.

However the Rangers, who have been playing excellent on both sides of the ball as of late, had an early answer in the form of Amber Mills. Although batting just .177 entering play, the senior from Friendswood, Texas has had numerous clutch hits this season; and today was no different. Mills (2-for-3, HR, 2 RBI) took an outside pitch the other way for her second home run of the season, a solo shot in the bottom of the 1^st that made it 3-1 in favor of SWOSU. Northwestern came back with a big inning in the 2^nd, scoring three runs on one hit coupled with two Bulldog errors to give the Rangers a 4-3 lead.

Despite a tough 1^st inning, Garza cruised through the next two frames before getting herself into a little trouble in the 4^th. After a leadoff single followed by a walk, Garza was bailed out after Abigail Schade lined out to Madi Parrott who fired a strike to Megan Sanders at first to double off the Bulldogs.

Northwestern answered with another big inning in the 4^th, knocking SWOSU starter Rileigh Ricken from the ballgame after three plus innings. The Rangers tagged Ricken and reliever Miranda Grover for four more runs in part thanks to Madison McGraw's second two-bagger of the game and a sacrifice fly from senior Alexis Hayes. McGraw would go 4-for-6 on the day with three doubles and a home run while driving in five.

The Rangers went on on to take the opener 11-3 after an offensive onslaught, coupled with Garza holding the Bulldogs off the board after a three run 1^st. Garza (5 IP, 2 H, 3 ER, 6 BB, 3 K) earned her seventh victory of the season.

Game 2
With hopes of taking their first doubleheader sweep since March 17 against Arkansas-Monticello, Ranger skipper Jill Webb sent Karly Murray to the circle in the nightcap.

Murray received some much appreciated run support in the 1^st inning off the bat of Madison McGraw, who continued her fantastic afternoon with a two-run home run over the wall in dead center. In search of her sixth win of the year, Murray held the Bulldogs off the board through the first three innings, allowing three hits and hitting a batter but maintained her composure to keep the Rangers ahead.

The Rangers would score a run in the bottom of the 4^th when Megan Sanders drove in Macy Madewell with a single to right, but the Bulldogs weren't about to roll over.

Murray unraveled in the 5^th when Southwestern tagged her for five runs in the inning before being lifted in favor of freshman Kendall Jones. The Rangers couldn't seem to catch a break defensively, surrendering 10 runs in the frame on eight Bulldog hits coupled with errors by Corrales and Sanders. The inning was capped off with a big grand slam off the bat of Samantha Householder who hit just her second round-tripper of the season.

Despite getting knocked around in the top half, the Rangers answered back in a huge way to keep life in their dugout.

Northwestern started a rally of their own thanks to back-to-back doubles by Mills and McGraw, beginning what would turn out to be a three run retaliation inning in the bottom of the 5^th. With McGraw on third base, Madewell cranked her second home run of the day to cut the SWOSU lead to 10-6. Madewell finished the day 4-for-6 with two home runs and five RBI's.

But Jones would struggle in the 6^th as well, giving up another crooked number to Southwestern that allowed the visitors to pull away yet again. After giving up four more in the 6^th, Jones was lifted in favor of Jalena Arthur who managed to get the black-and-red back to the dugout facing a 14-6 SWOSU lead.
The Bulldogs kept the Rangers off the board in the 6^th, wrapping up a disappointing doubleheader split with Southwestern.

Up Next
The Rangers will turn their focus to Southern Nazarene as they host the Crimson Storm for a four-game weekend series in Alva. The games on Friday, April 7 will get underway at 2 p.m., followed by a noon doubleheader on Saturday, April 8.

For the latest news and updates on Ranger Softball, follow @NWOSUAthletics on Twitter or visit www.riderangersride.com