Box Score 1 |
Box Score 2 CEDAR FALLS, Iowa – The Belmont University Softball team (34–11, 20–5 MVC) split day one of its conference series against Northern Iowa on Friday. The Bruins opened with a dominant 7–0 shutout before falling 5-6 in a tightly contested second game.
Highlighting the day, Nicole Hughes recorded her 199th career hit, surpassing Belmont softball's all-time record of 197.
VS Northern Iowa – Game 1 (7–0)
Belmont jumped out early, plating two runs in the first inning behind an RBI single from Rylee Spindler and a sacrifice fly from Nicole Hughes.
The Bruins added to their lead in the fourth, with RBI singles from Brenna Blume and Tallulah Eichholz extending the advantage to 5–0. Belmont continued to build momentum with solo home runs from Hughes in the fifth and Lydia Vanderwoude in the sixth to seal the 7–0 win.
In the circle, Maya Johnson delivered another dominant performance, tossing a complete-game shutout. She allowed just two hits while striking out 13 to improve to 23–2 on the season. The shutout marked Belmont's 16th of the year and Johnson's 12th.
VS Northern Iowa – Game 2 (5–6)
Game two remained scoreless until the top of the fourth when Belmont took an early lead on a solo home run from Maddy Balsiger.
Northern Iowa responded with a six-run surge across the fifth and sixth innings to take control of the game.
The Bruins mounted a late comeback effort in the seventh. Brenna Blume delivered a two-RBI single to cut into the deficit, followed by an RBI double from Lydia Vanderwoude and a sacrifice fly from Tallulah Eichholz to bring Belmont within one.
Despite the rally, Belmont was unable to complete the comeback, falling 5-6.
Up Next
Belmont will look to secure the series in game three against Northern Iowa on Saturday, April 25 at 1 p.m. CT in Cedar Falls. The game will be streamed on ESPN+ with live stats available on GoBelmontBruins.com.
Follow Belmont softball on social media — @BelmontSoftball on Twitter, @belmontsoftball on Instagram, and Belmont Bruins Softball on Facebook — for complete coverage. Stay up to date with all Belmont athletics through the official Belmont Bruins app, available on the Apple App Store and Google Play.
