MADISON, Wis.— Despite coming from behind and tying the game in the bottom of the sixth inning, the Wisconsin softball team couldn't hold off a late surge and fell to Northern Illinois, 6-4, on Tuesday afternoon at Goodman Diamond.

Wisconsin (29-14 overall, 8-11 Big Ten) trailed 3-0 behind the Huskies (29-13, 13-8 MAC) heading into the bottom of the fourth inning until sophomore Kelly Welsh singled through the left side to score freshman Jordan Little, who reached base on her own single through the left, to cut the Husky lead to 3-1.

After a scoreless fifth inning, the Badgers put up two more runs in the bottom of the sixth to even things out, 3-3. Wisconsin put two runners on when junior Kelsey Jenkins reached base on a fielder's choice and then advanced as senior Chloe Miller was hit by a pitch. Fellow senior Sara Novak stepped up and slammed a two-RBI double to left field that nearly cleared the fence, scoring both Jenkins and Miller.

Novak shined in her final appearance at Goodman Diamond, going 4-for-4 at the plate and batting in two runs.

Northern Illinois rebounded late to take a 6-3 advantage in the seventh, scoring three runs on a pair of singles in the top of the frame.

The Badgers chipped away at the lead in the final half inning as sophomore Gabby Scherle scored a run after back-to-back hits from Welsh and Jenkins.

Wisconsin loaded up the bases when Miller and Jenkins both reached to load up the bases, but the rally fell short when the Huskies secured the final out to win, 6-4.

Northern Illinois struck first in the top of the fourth inning, putting up three runs on two Wisconsin errors.
 
Details from the Dugout:
"That one's going to hurt, it's going to take us a little bit to recover but we have to make a quick turnaround and get ready for Maryland. I give credit to Northern Illinois, they outplayed us so they deserved that win."

"We just have to get back to work. I just think they came up with all the big hits when they needed to. We battled, that was a good thing, but we made the game a lot tougher than it needed to be. I think we could be sharper in a lot of places. Season's not over yet. That was the end of our homestand but we still have to go to Maryland and go after that last Big Ten series."

"We get one more day of practice in [before Maryland] so I think it's just about having a good approach going into it. Maryland is a good team and they've got some big ranked wins this year so we know they're going to be tough. You've got to just reset and try to play better softball."

"I think everybody is motivated, I just think it's a new thing. A lot of this has not been there before, playing in that postseason. You just have to play good softball late, and this game wasn't a showing of that. We've got another weekend to try to do that."
-UW Head Coach Yvette Healy
 
Up Next:
The Badgers hit the road for their final Big Ten series, traveling to Maryland for a three-game series. Friday's first pitch is set for 5 p.m. (CT).