No. 4 Softball rallies for 8-5 victory over Defiance on Day 2 of NCAA III Tournament

Jackie Mangola

By Tim Glon

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GREENCASTLE, Ind. -- Top-seeded and No. 4-ranked Ohio Northern rallied from a 5-3 deficit to defeat fifth-seeded Defiance 8-5 in Game 7 of the NCAA Division III Regional Tournament Friday afternoon at DePauw Softball Field.

The Polar Bears (37-3) advance to the finals of the winner's bracket and will face second-seeded and No. 15-ranked DePauw (Ind.) Saturday morning at 10 am.

The Yellow Jackets (29-15) drop down to the loser's bracket and will face either sixth-seeded Thomas More (Ky.) or seventh-seeded Hiram Saturday at Noon in an elimination game.

The game was halted due to lightning at 3:05 pm with the score tied at 3-3 in the bottom of the third inning. Play resumed after a 1:30 rain delay.

Northern trailed 5-3 entering the top of the fifth, but rallied for five runs in their last three at-bats, including a 3-run seventh frame.

Jackie Mangola smashed a 2-run home run and finished with three RBI to lead the ONU offense, while Cortney Cash earned her school-record 26th victory of the season against just one defeat with a complete-game victory.

mandi Fought added a pair of hits and made a diving catch in center field tosave at least two and possibly three runs in DC's big third-inning rally.

Northern got on the board quickly in the top of the first inning when Tina Mangola hit a sacrifice fly to deep right field to score Mandi Fought from third base and give ONU a 1-0 lead.

Fought had led off the inning with a double to the left center field gap and moved to third base on a sacrifice bunt by Liz Decima.

Defiance took the lead 2-1 in the bottom of the first when Marah Robinson drilled a two-out double over Mangola’s head in right field to plate Amanda Auzins and Tasha Stucke.

Northern’s high-powered offense struck again in the top of the second when Jackie Mangola absolutely crushed a two-run homer to straight away center field that cleared the outfield bleachers.

Her team-leading sixth home run gave ONU a 3-2 lead and also scored Cassie Gaye who was on first base after reaching on an error by the third baseman one batter prior.

Gaye then made a great defensive play when she nabbed an attempted bunt out of the air and fired to first to double up the runner on first and clear the bases of Yellow Jackets.

DC tied the game 3-3 on a home run to left center from Auzins in the bottom of the third before the rain delay occurred.

After the rain delay, Tasha Stucke drew a walk and Melanie Bushman had a bunt single to load the bases with no one out.

Marah Robinson the drew a walk to score Aarika Davis, who had singles just prior to the rain delay.

Kayla Crager hit a bloop single to shallow left field to score Stucke and make it 5-3 DC.

Cash then struck out Stephenie Leito for the second out and Fought made a spectacular diving catch of a line drive into the right-center field gap by Allison Ramsay to end the threat and save at least two runs from scoring.

Decima's single up the middle started a 2-out  rally for the Polar Bears in the top of the fifth. Tina Mangola followed with a single, Kim Blewett walked and Danielle Goubeaux singled to short to pull ONU within 5-4.

Northern started another rally in the top of the sixth when Jackie Mangola led off the inning by reaching on a fielding error by DC pitcher Justine Johnston and Katie Cretin followed with a single to left.

Cash bunted Mangola and pinch-runner Katie Salay over to second and third, respectively, chasing Johnston.

Kelly Schnipke came on in relief, but Fought tied the game up at 5-5 with a ground out to first, scoring Mangola.

Tina Mangola led off the top of the seventh with a single to left. Goubeaux followed one out later with an RBI double to left center to score Mangola and give the Polar Bears a 6-5 lead.

Jackie Mangola followed with a 2-out single through the left side, scoring Goubeaux, to give ONU a 7-5 advantage. Mangola went to second on the throw to the plate and advanced to third on a wild pitch.

Cretin the laced a single to center to score Mangola and make it 8-5 Ohio Northern.

"This was just an outstanding NCAA Tournament game," ONU head coach Annette Shepherd said. "We had people stepping up all over the place. Cash was outstanding over the final four innings, we got a hugh 2-run home run from Jackie Mangola, Mandi Fought made a game-changing catch in center field, and we had many clutch hits down the stretch."