Coming off two impressive wins, the softball team is playing host to conference rival Toledo on Sunday. The Falcons managed to score early and often Wednesday against Ohio and their offense was backed up with phenomenal pitching and defense as well. The Falcons now hope to take the intensity and execution from that game and apply it on Sunday.
With two days off the team should be well rested and hungry for more victories, starting with Toledo. Before the Falcons last wins they had lost five in a row, however, have now improved their record to 11-17-1 for the season. The Falcons were also finally able to post wins in the conference, and are hoping getting the first wins were the hardest. Now 2-5 in MAC play, the team hopes to get closer to .500 with victories on Sunday.
This game, although against a rival, will still require the same needs.
The pitching for the Falcons, which has been great all season, must continue in order for the Falcons to be successful. The pitching also needs to be matched by hitting, which seems to be coming to the Falcons as of late, combining to score six runs in the last two games.
The Rockets, however, are not going to be a pushover for the Falcons on Sunday and are also looking to move up in the conference standings.
Currently 5-14 overall and 2-4 in the MAC the Rockets find themselves just a half game up on the Falcons for fifth place in the conference.
As if being the battle of I-75 was not enough for this rivalry, the Rockets may be looking to avenge last year’s 0-3 record against the Falcons. The two teams faced each other three times last year, in which the Falcons were victorious in all of them, with two of the games having to be decided in extra innings.
Although both teams are struggling in the conference early in the season, both are looking to turn things around. Sunday could prove to be a turning point for either team and might turn out to be a very interesting double-header. Having over 15 conference games left in the season, the Falcons and the Rockets know the importance of MAC wins early on in the season.
The first pitch of the double-header is scheduled for 1 p.m. Sunday at Bowling Green Softball Stadium. Sunday’s double-header is the first meeting between the Rockets and Falcons this season, but not the last.
The two teams play each other once again in Bowling Green on April 23.
