Jennifer Kempf and Ryan Rogge split game one to throw a shutout for the Toppers (17-26, 3-13 in Sun Belt Conference game).
Kempf (7-11) earned the victory after four innings pitched and only allowing three hits. Rogge then pitched the final three innings for her second save on the season.
WKU scored the lone run in the third as Sam Cronk started the inning by reaching first on a single to the pitcher. She then stole second and later scored on an error by the third baseman.
The Mean Green (24-27, 9-11 in conference play) tried to tie the game in the seventh as Sarah Jones singled to right field and Courtney Bradshaw followed with a double to left center to put two on with one out. However, Rogge was able to get the next two batters to strikeout for a Hilltopper victory.
Shelby Smith was the only Topper to collect two hits for the contest.
Kristina Folwer (7-10) took the loss after pitching the full seven innings and allowing just four hits and one unearned run.
Down 3-0 after the first inning in game two, WKU stormed back with a four-run second inning to capture the lead. She. Smith doubled to lead off the inning and then scored on a Rebecca Horesky double. Shannon Smith reached on a bunt single, then Cronk singled home Horesky. After WKU forced the Mean Green to change pitchers, Rachelle Boucher hit a sacrifice fly to score Sha. Smith and Ashley Contreras followed with a single to left field to score Cronk.
North Texas still had fight left in them as they loaded the bases in the bottom of the second and Mallory Cantler singled home two to give the lead back to the Mean Green 5-4. A two-run double by Rebecca Waters gave NT a five-run inning and a 8-4 lead that they would never relinquish.
WKU started chipping away at the lead when they scored a single run in the third, fourth and fifth innings. A Cronk double scored Horesky, who reached on a fielder’s choice in the third. Terri Ellingsworth walked to start the fourth and then scored on a Lindsay Antone single to cut the lead to 8-6.
North Texas push the lead up to 9-6 in the fourth on a Fowler double to right field that scored Mariza Martinez, but the Toppers cut the gap to two runs again in the fifth on a Kelsey McCauley single that scored Cronk.
However, the Mean Green tallied three more runs in the bottom of the fifth on three singles that scored a run each to take command 12-7.
Waters got things going for North Texas in the first when she nailed a three-run homer.
Cronk collected two hits, two RBI and two runs for the Toppers while five Mean Green hitters tallied two hits each.
The two teams will wrap up the series on Sunday starting at 11 a.m. (CDT) with a single game.
