After two consecutive losses in non-conference games, the Falcons return to Mid-American Conference action this weekend when they travel to Central Michigan.

Coach Leigh Ross-Shaw said that the three-game set will be a test for the Falcons, and that the team needs to be focused. “It just depends on the intensity level that we are going to bring,” Ross-Shaw said. “We’ve got all the physical tools, we’re more than capable of [winning]; it’s just a matter of what kind of effort we are going to put out there.”

In Central Michigan, Ross-Shaw said that while Chippewas have been depleted since last year, they remain a difficult team to face.

“They are a good team and a really strong program,” Ross Shaw said. “Player for player I think we’re just as good if not better. But we’re going to have to find that intensity and see if we can step up and do it.”

The Falcons scored a total of four runs in their doubleheader loss to Detroit. Ross-Shaw said that game postponements in February may have affected the team’s ability to create offense. She said that she expects the hitting to come around.

“I think that the hitting will come around as long as they have good at-bats, be focused when they’re at the plate and swing at good pitches. It’s time for it to come around now that we are in season.”

While the hitting has been inconsistent, the pitching has remained strong for BG. Ross-Shaw said that she will send Liz Vrabel to the mound for the first game of the doubleheader on Saturday. Vrabel last pitched in the second game of Wednesday’s doubleheader.

“She’s been throwing great,” Ross-Shaw said. “She’s just a strong presence on the mound.”

Ross-Shaw said McKenna Houle will start the second game, but is not sure who will start the third.

“We’ll just have to see how they handle the pitchers,” Ross-Shaw said. “You can’t throw the same pitcher for three games…we’re going to try to mix it up.”

The first game on Saturday, as well as the game on Sunday, will begin at 1 p.m.