Wheaton, Ill. - The Thunder softball team dropped a pair of tightly contested games at North Central on Thursday afternoon. Wheaton dropped game one by a score of 3-2 before falling in the nightcap 3-1. Wheaton is now 13-19 on the season and 10-16 in the CCIW. Wheaton will continue it's busy week on Friday when the Thunder travel to North Park for the continuation of a delayed game from April 1. Wheaton will then travel to Augustana for a Saturday doubleheader to conclude the regular season.

Janette Oh put the Thunder on the board in the top of the third inning with an RBI double answering a North Central run in the bottom of the first inning. Ashley Carter followed with a single to score Oh and put the Thunder ahead 2-1. The host Cardinals responded in the bottom of the fourth inning with a two-run home run to retake a 3-2 lead and set up a dramatic finish.

Trailing by one in the top of the seventh inning, Wheaton loaded the bases with one out but could not come through with the breakthrough hit. Wheaton's two runs came on six hits with the Cardinals finishing with three runs on seven hits.

North Central scored first in the nightcap by manufacturing a run in the top of the first inning. From there the two pitchers took center stage with Breanna Adams and Alese Antonello trading shutout innings. Antonello sidestepped trouble throughout the game, allowing 12 hits in the game and stranding runners on base in five of seven innings.

After the game moved without any further scoring into the seventh inning, the Cardinals added two more runs in the top of the seventh inning to lead 3-0. Wheaton would push a run across in the bottom of the seventh when Oh reached on an error allowing Elizabeth Meyer to score and account for the 3-1 final.