In advance of its final Iowa Conference doubleheader of the season scheduled for Saturday in Pella, the Buena Vista softball team stepped out of league play on Friday evening for a non-conference twinbill at Northwestern College (IA).  The Red Raiders edged BVU, 1-0, in the opener before the Beavers bounced back to edge NWC, 4-3, in game two.

Game one was a true pitcher's duel, as the two teams combined for only 10 hits.  An RBI double by the Red Raiders in the fifth inning was the only run of the contest.  Keely Bycroft got the start and went the distance on the mound for BVU, allowing just the one run on six hits while striking out five.

Cortney Weaver came on late and recored a double in her only at-bat, the team's only extra-base hit of the game.

The Beavers came out firing in the nightcap, scoring all four of their runs in the first inning before holding off a late threat by the Red Raiders to secure the one-run victory.

Marissa Schmidt doubled home the game's first run before Bycroft singled her home to make it 2-0.  Later in the inning, Haley Stevens came through with a clutch 2-run single for a four-run advantage.

Northwestern singled and doubled home a run in the third to cut the deficit to 4-2, and that's how things stood until the seventh.  The Red Raiders chalked up back-to-back singles to start the inning, putting runners at first and third.  They then attempted a double-steal, but had the trail runner thrown out at second, despite scoring a run on the play.  Moriah Guyett, who came back into the game, then got a pop out and ground out to end the game.

Guyett, who got the start, pitched a total of four innings, allowing two runs on four hits, while striking out two.  Brooke Hansen relieved Guyett in the fourth and surrendered just one run on four hits in three innings.

Schmidt finished 4-for-4 at the dish with an RBI and run scored.  Stephanie Hayden followed with two hits, to go along with her school record 50th career stolen base.  As a team, BVU tallied nine hits to edge Northwestern, which had eight.

Buena Vista now sits at 16-17-1 overall and is scheduled to travel to #18 Central College for the final confernece games of the year on Saturday afternoon, starting at 2:00pm.