Saturday's Softball Results
Saturday's Scoreboard
Ball State 8, Buffalo 7
Ball State 12, Buffalo 4
Central Michigan 1, Akron 0
Kent State 9, Miami 1
Northern Illinois 6, Toledo 5
Ohio 12, Eastern Michigan 2
Western Michigan 10, Bowling Green 1
Ball State 8, Buffalo 7
Ball State 12, Buffalo 4
Results One
Results Two
OXFORD, Ohio. - - On a day with many twist and turns, it was a clutch seventh inning home run from junior shortstop Selena Reyna (Houston, Texas/South Houston) which gave Ball State the momentum and ultimately a doubleheader sweep of Buffalo Saturday at Miami University’s Softball Stadium.
The Cardinals (16-18 / 4-1 MAC) trailed 5-2 entering the seventh inning of the opener versus the Bulls (7-26 / 0-6 MAC) only to rally for three runs in the frame, including Reyna’s game-tying home run, and go on to win the game 7-6 in nine innings. Ball State followed with a dominating 12-4 (6) win in the nightcap to complete the sweep of Buffalo.
Overall, 10 different Cardinals recorded at least one hit over the two games, with junior second baseman Emily Dabkowski (Plainfield, Ind./South Putnam) leading the way with five, including her MAC-leading 10th home run of the season. Dabkowski scored the game-winning run in the opener, while driving in what proved to be the game-deciding run in the nightcap. She went on to finish the day with a team-best five RBI and scored three runs
Sophomore center fielder Taylor Cooley (Chelsea, Mich./Chelsea) also turned in a solid day at the plate, sparking the Cardinals seventh-inning rally in the first game with a RBI double, the first double of her career, and finishing the day with a team-best four runs scored and .571 (4-for-7) batting average.
Senior catcher Jessica Craft (LaPorte, Ind./LaPorte) also came up with a key hit in the opener, driving in the game-winning run with a double to center field, and finished the day 4-for-8 with two RBI and a run scored. Reyna also finished the day with four hits, including her game-tying home run in the first contest, while adding three RBI and three runs scored.
In the circle, junior Nicole Steinbach (Merrillville, Ind./Andrean) went the distance in the opener, tying a career-high with 10 strikeouts while limiting the Bulls to three earned runs over 9.0 innings of work. With the win, Steinbach improved to 8-10 on the year.
Freshman pitcher Carolyn Wilmes (Evansville, Ind./Mater Dei) kept the Buffalo offense at bay in the nightcap, limiting the Bulls to just seven hits and four runs over 6.0 innings. She also struck out a pair of batters to improve to 5-4 on the year.
The Ball State softball team is scheduled to return to action Tuesday, when Eastern Illinois visits the Softball Field at the First Merchants Ballpark Complex for a 2 p.m. doubleheader.
Central Michigan 1, Akron 0
Results
AKRON, Ohio -- Sophomore Rachael Knapp pitched seven scoreless innings and gave up just three hits to give the Central Michigan softball team a tightly contested 1-0 victory over Akron on Saturday.
The win extended the Chippewas' win streak to five and improved their record to 13-15 overall, 3-2 in the Mid-American Conference.
In a game where both teams combined for just four total hits, CMU found itself in a pitching dual between Knapp and Zip junior Erin Seiler.
The two pitchers threw seven complete innings for their respective teams and accounted for 16 strikeouts in the ballgame, with Knapp recording 10.
"Today's game was the exact opposite from (Friday's games)," said CMU coach Margo Jonker, who watched her team hit nine home runs and collect 23 hits in sweeping a MAC doubleheader from Ohio on Friday. "Offense was the key component (Friday), and today, the defense and the pitching were the key components.
"Today was an old-time traditional pitchers dual game. It was very exciting for those of us that like pitching and great defense. I thought Akron had some great plays in the field and we were solid on defense all day."
Seiler held CMU to just one hit, a double by Lacy Tolfree in the sixth inning with one out, and walked just one.
Knapp improved to 9-5. She surrendered a two-out double Caitlin Gambone in the bottom of the seventh, but got the final out on a liner.
The Chippewas did not commit an error behind her.
"Knapp pitched really well for us and the defense was solid behind her," Jonker said. "I think Knapp came through in some pressure situations and got some outs when we really needed them. I was very impressed with that."
The Chippewas scored the game's only run in the first inning when Tolfree drew a leadoff walk, stole second, and went to third on an error. She scored on Katelyn Rentschler's one-out sacrifice fly.
"It's great to win a 1-0 ballgame," said Jonker, whose team outscored the Bobcats 22-4 in sweeping on Friday. "We're going to win in different ways. We'll win with the home run ball on occasion. We'll win with gap-to-gap hitting. And we'll also win by creating runs.
"(Friday) we won with the home run ball and today we had to rely on pitching and defense. That just shows that we can do what we have to win games."
The Chippewas close out their Ohio road trip -- and attempt to complete unbeaten -- with another game against the Zips (12-17, 0-4 MAC) in Akron on Sunday at 1 p.m.
Kent State 9, Miami 1
Results
OXFORD, Ohio – Kent State's power was on display in a 9-1 win over Miami on Saturday. The Golden Flashes hit four home runs to remain unbeaten in Mid-American Conference play.
"It was another great day at the office," said head coach Karen Linder. "We did a great job of putting runs on the board throughout the day and got contributions from our entire lineup. We are playing really well and with a lot of confidence right now."
The left side of the infield led the way offensively for Kent State (23-6, 4-0 MAC), as shortstop Holly Speers and third baseman Maddy Grimm combined for seven hits, seven RBIs and three home runs.
Speers gave the Flashes a 1-0 lead with a solo home run in the top of the second inning. Grimm followed with a single, but was left stranded at second base.
Kent State broke the game open in the third with a four-run inning. Dani Ramos singled, moved to third on a double by Kim Kirkpatrick and came home to score on a fielder's choice by Shelbi Tilton. With two outs, Speers crushed her second homer of the game to bring in three runs.
Ronnie Ladines made it a 6-0 game with a solo home run in the fourth inning, her second of the season.
Miami collected three of its five hits in the bottom of the fifth to score a run and avoid being shutout.
The Flashes put an end to any thoughts of a last-inning comeback by plating three more runs in the top of the seventh. Tilton singled and was replaced on the base path by Lauren Kesterson, who moved to second on a sacrifice bunt by twin sister Chloe Kesterson. Speers followed with an RBI single up the middle and then scored on a two-run blast to left field by Grimm.
Speers was a perfect 3-for-3 at the plate with two home runs and five RBIs. Grimm went 4-for-4 with one double, one home run and two RBIs.
Emma Johnson (12-3) struck out 11 batters while allowing just one run on five hits to win in her sixth consecutive start.
"Emma did an excellent job of shutting down Miami's offense," Linder added. "And Erika Warren really called a great game behind the plate."
Kent State will conclude the weekend against Miami on Sunday at 1 p.m.
Northern Illinois 6, Toledo 5
Results
DEKALB, Ill. -- The Northern Illinois University softball team went back and forth with Toledo Saturday, but it was a two-out rally in the bottom of the seventh that lifted the Huskies to a 6-5 win.
With runners on first and second, Emily Naegele (Oak Forest, Ill./Oak Forest) helped the Huskies (17-14, 4-1 MAC) walk off a winner over the Rockets (12-21, 0-5 MAC) with a line-drive single through the right side of the infield. The hit capped off a wild ending to the game that saw both teams combine for seven runs, eight hits and three lead changes between the middle of the sixth and the game-winning hit.
"That was one of the funnest games I've been in in my coaching career," said NIU head coach Christina Sutcliffe. "They just fought their little hearts out and fed off Toledo's energy to come away with the win."
After two quick outs, Kali Kossakowski (Elgin, Ill./St. Edward) kept the Huskie rally alive when she reached base on an error. Kayti Grable (Santee, Calif./Santana) quickly drew a walk to bring up Naegele with a chance to tie or win. With the count full, the junior from Oak Forest, Illinois, lined a single through the right side of the infield to bring home Kossakowski, while a misplay by Toledo outfielder Celeste Fidge allowed pinchrunner Kaitlyn Barrett (Monticello, Ill./Monticello) to score for the win.
The Rockets opened the game with a big first inning for a 2-0 lead before the first NIU at-bat. Chandler Rice put the first run on the board for Toledo with a single to score Jessica Lemieux, while Fidge's single moments later scored Rice.
NIU, though, summarily answered in the bottom half of the opening stanza. With two out, Grable hit a deep drive against the wind into left-center field that just cleared the wall and trim the deficit to 2-1.
Both teams settled down in the next few innings, as pitchers Jessica Sturm (Wichita, Kan./Goddard) and Emily Anderson traded scoreless frames. Between the second and fourth innings, Sturm -- thanks to some nifty plays in the infield by the NIU defense -- limited the Rockets to just one hit and one walk. Meanwhile, Anderson matched her counterpart by giving up no hits or walks during that stretch.
The Rockets tallied an insurance run in the fifth when Rice singled home Lemieux with two outs, pushing the Toledo lead to 3-1.
In the bottom of the sixth, the Huskie offense erupted. Grable and Naegele tied the game with back-to-back dingers, as Grable hit a moonshot over the leftfield fence and Naegele jacked one to center. Bekah Harnish (Maple Park, Ill./Burlington Central) kept the run going with a double, then scored when Sturm helped her own cause with a bloop single to centerfield.
However, Toledo was not done. With one away and a runner on first, Nichole Toven doubled off the wall in centerfield to score Lemieux and make it a 5-5 deadlock. Meanwhile, Fidge put the Rockets in front with an RBI fielder's choice to set the stage for the Huskies' rally in the bottom of the seventh.
NIU caps its weekend tomorrow at 1 p.m. against the Rockets.
Ohio 12, Eastern Michigan 2
Results
ATHENS, Ohio-- The Ohio softball team took the first game of a two-game set against Eastern Michigan with a 12-2 five-inning victory at the Ohio Softball Field on Saturday afternoon.
Ohio (10-20, 3-2 MAC) opened the scoring with four runs in the bottom of the first. Kaylin Clarke (North Royalton, Ohio) brought home the first two runs with a single that scored both Amanda Dalton (Salem, Va.) and Casie Hutchinson (Lebanon, Ohio). Raven King (Alpine, Utah) added the next two runs with a two-run homer to right center that scored Clarke.
The Bobcats got right back at it in the second inning, adding onto the lead with a five-run frame. A bunt single by Dalton scored Dakota Pyles (Galloway, Ohio). A double by Hutchinson would then drive home Timmie Rappe (Wheaton, Ill.) and then Clarke would smash a three-run homerun over the scoreboard to score Hutchinson and Sloan Walker (Cypress, Texas) and out Ohio up 9-0.
Eastern Michigan (9-20, 1-3 MAC) would counter in the top of the third, notching a run on a single by Abi Clark to cut the Ohio lead to 9-1.
Ohio followed that in the bottom of the third with a two-run single by Clarke, which scored Dalton and Rappe.
In the fourth, Ohio scored its final run of the game on a solo home run by Pyles to left field.
The Eagles would tack on another run in the top of the fifth on a hit by Michelle Kreigshauser to give the game its final 12-2 tally.
At the plate, Clarke went 3-for-3 with one home run, two runs scored and seven RBIs. Dalton also had a three-hit game, scoring two runs and driving in one. Both King and Hutchinson added two hits while Pyles and Rappe each scored a pair of runs.
Clarke earned a complete game for the Bobcats, allowing two runs on seven hits, one walk and one strikeout.
Ohio finishes up its series with EMU on Sunday at the Ohio Softball Field, with first pitch scheduled for 1 p.m.
Western Michigan 10, Bowling Green 1
Results
KALAMAZOO, Mich.- Western Michigan softball continued its hot hitting, rattling off its fifth-straight victory this week with a 10-1 win over visiting Bowling Green Saturday. WMU concludes weekend play tomorrow with a 1 p.m. contest against the Falcons.
Bowling Green (12-15, 3-2 MAC) scored its only run in the top of the first and Western Michigan shot back with six runs in the bottom half of the inning. Sophomore third baseman Kelsea Cichocki and freshman right fielder Geordin Craun each recorded an RBI single. Sophomore first baseman Marlee Wilson delivered the big blow, crushing a three-run home run to left center field. It was her first home run of the season.
Junior pitcher Allyson Kus did a great job working out of a jam in the second. Bowling Green had runners on second and third with no outs after a single, a walk and a wild pitch. Kus left the runners standing where they were, shutting down the threat with a swinging strikeout, a shallow pop fly to right and another swinging strikeout.
Western Michigan (11-16, 3-2 MAC) put away the game with four more runs in the third. Junior shortstop Sabrina Gamboa beat out a throw to first for an RBI single and sophomore left fielder Ivy Schaaf belted a bases-loaded double to right center, clearing the bags.
Kus struck out a season-high six batters, one shy of her career high, over five innings pitched. She allowed just four hits, all singles, and improved her record to 2-5 on the season.
Western Michigan had 10 hits in the game. Schaaf and Cichocki each collected two.
