It may not have been a winning weekend for Iowa softball, but the team managed to tally a victory for the first time since April 10.

Over the course of 18 days, the softball team slipped into a 10-game losing streak. During that time, opponents outscored the Hawkeyes, 60-20, and there was a glaring lack of offensive production.

Game 1 of the series started as the many games before it had, with the Hawkeyes down. With Lauren Shaw in the circle, Northwestern tallied 2 hits and a steal to score its first run of the game.

Iowa’s Allie Wood responded in the next inning with a 2-run blast over the left-field wall, but that was all the offense Iowa could muster.

Iowa tallied just 3 more hits in the game, and a 3-run third inning from Northwestern buried Iowa, 4-1. Shaw took the loss, and Iowa’s losing streak extended to 10.

And 10 it stayed. Head coach Marla Looper looked to sophomore ace Allison Doocy to break the streak, and Doocy delivered.

It took a gem of a performance from Doocy to tame the Wildcats in the second game of the series. She threw a complete game, allowing just 2 hits and 2 walks. She added 8 strikeouts to carve up the Wildcats.

Iowa’s offense finally found a spark. The team struck first in the top of the second inning, when Angela Schmiederer sent a triple down the right field line to score Havyn Monteer and Wood.

The Hawkeyes tallied another run in the third inning when pinch hitter Devan Cantu hit an RBI single through the right side to score Mallory Kilian. Iowa stranded three runners at the end of the inning.

Doocy protected the 3-run lead for the rest of the game to emerge as victors.

“The opponents have done a good job of scouting Doocy over the last few weeks, so we’ve had a few of our other pitchers come in and let her rest,” Looper said in a release. “I think that allowed her to come in and throw the way she did today. She came into the game with the mindset that she was going to take care of business, and she did that. It was also nice to finally see us produce some offense today.”

Looper and her squad ultimately did lose the series, dropping the final game, 6-2.

Northwestern exploded for 13 hits on four different Iowa pitchers. Kenzie Ihle got the start in the circle and pitched 2 innings, allowing 6 hits and 5 runs while facing just 15 batters.

Erin Riding pitched 2.1 for the Hawkeyes and scattered 3 hits and allowed 1 run. Ashley Yoways pitched 0.2 innings and allowed 3 hits and no runs. And Shaw closed the game for Iowa, pitching 1 inning and allowing just 1 hit.

Iowa’s lone offense came on an Allie Wood homer, which brought in 2 runs. Northwestern’s pitcher Kenna Wilkey threw a complete game and allowed just 3 Hawkeye hits.

“We talked all weekend about how Northwestern was going to challenge us defensively, and we didn’t do a good job offensively to get on the board,” Looper said in a release.