The RoundHouse | 3/10/2019 10:18:00 PM

 
Erin McDonald didn't understand why Sunday's 6-2 win over Nebraska prompted such a reaction from assistant coach Ryne Stefankiewicz.
 
"We came off the field and Ryne hugged me and was crying and I was like 'What?'" she said. "Everyone was like 'You threw a no-hitter.'"

A little confusion is understandable. 

While McDonald threw seven innings and recorded all 21 outs, she combined on the no-hitter with starter Caitlin Bingham. And the Huskers did score two first-inning runs on sacrifice flies, so McDonald felt as if she gave up something. The scoreboard and scorebook were not upper-most on her mind at Wilkins Stadium - keeping the ball low in the strike zone to frustrate the Huskers dominated her thinking.
 
"Nothing really processed," she said. "Clear mind."
 
The circumstances were unusual to start Sunday's double-header sweep of Nebraska. Bingham walked the first two batters, continuing her struggles with control, and McDonald replaced her. She recorded the next 21 outs, two by strike out, walked two and held the Huskers without a hit. It is Wichita State's first combined no-hitter since 2003 and first no-hitter since Katie Malone defeated Missouri State 12-0 in five innings in 2014. In 2006, Margo Pruis no-hit Northern Colorado for seven innings in a 6-0 victory.
 
In the nightcap, Wichita State centerfielder AseaWebber hit a grand slam in the sixth inning to give the Shockers a three-game sweep with a 7-5 victory. The Shockers (17-5) have won eight of nine games. 

Coach Kristi Bredbenner saw the weekend as a rehearsal for American Athletic Conference play.
 
"We've got to figure out ways to beat teams three times," she said. "A team like Nebraska, in the Big 10, who I have a lot of respect for, I feel like they're that stepping-stone team for us moving forward. This is a good format for us, very similar to conference (weekends)."
 
McDonald, a sophomore transfer from Louisiana Tech, rescued the Shockers in the opener. McDonald limited the first-inning damage to two runs with a foul ball, a fly out and a groundball. She didn't allow a runner until a walk with two outs in the sixth. 
 
"We've been working on keeping the ball low, keeping it low and then when I wanted to go up with the rise, that was pretty good," she said. "(Saturday), they hit me hard so I just wanted to get out there and throw strikes."
 
McDonald threw 19 innings as a freshman for Louisiana Tech and compiled a 1.84 earned run average. On Sunday, she won the first game and threw three innings in the second, allowing three runs and earning the save. She is 5-1 with a 1.91 ERA over 51 1/3 innings.
 
"Fantastic day," Bredbenner said. "She did a really nice job of keeping the team off balance and hitting her spots. She finished a lot of her pitches, which is something I feel was something she was struggling with. It's that awareness that it's not that you have to be perfect, but you have to be going hard all the time."
 
After holding the Huskers to three runs in the first two innings, Wichita State's pitching slumped in final game of the series. Wichita State's offense came through.
 
Nebraska (10-9) took a 5-3 lead into the sixth inning. With one out, Wylie Glover bunted her way on and Laurie Derricoand Madison Perriganwalked to load the bases. After Bailee Nickersonstruck out, Webber smacked a high fly ball down the right field line and over the fence to give the Shockers a 7-5 lead.
 
"I was struggling to see the ball today," Webber said. "Right before that pitch, I was thinking 'Hit a strike, hit a strike,' because I had been swinging at some balls. I didn't even know it was a changeup. I was kind of like Erin – I didn't know what was going on, I was just swinging."
 
Webber started the top of the seventh inning with a diving catch in center field, helping McDonald work around a two-out walk.
 
"This gives us a lot of confidence going into the week," Webber said. "While Caitlin struggled, it also showed that we can pick our pitcher up. The pitchers can pick us up. We can push through it."
 
Paul Suellentropcovers Wichita State Athletics and the American Athletic Conference for university Strategic Communications. Contact him at paul.suellentrop@wichita.edu.