BGSU softball (4-14) earned their fourth victory of the year as well as their fourteenth loss on Friday in the opening doubleheader of the Hoosier Classic in Bloomington, Indiana on the site of Indiana University.
The Falcon offense paired up with clutch performances from pitchers Mackenzie Krafcik and Scarlet Anderson to create a concoction that skated the Orange and Brown by narrowly on a final score of 7-6 in game one against UIC (4-17).
Game two ended one inning short of the full seven after a three-run sixth inning pulled the Hoosiers eight runs ahead after the conclusion of six, handing Indiana (14-5) their second Hoosier Classic mercy rule in as many attempts.
Game One: Bowling Green vs UIC
Second baseman Hannah Hunt opened up the Hoosier Classic with a statement three-run no-doubter of a home run that put the Falcons ahead early and forced the Flames to play catch up.
Freshman starting pitcher Sydney Marshall struggled, failing to get an out after being pulled from the game due to the allowance of four UIC runs via a double by designated player Sequoia Sanchez and a single by shortstop Siena Stickney, putting the Flames ahead before the conclusion of the first inning.
Flame starting pitcher Jasmine Whorley faced trouble once again in the top of the second after a sacrifice fly by designated player Katie Hutter brought up third baseman Addie Martin, who drilled her fifth home run of the season and brought two Falcons along with her, taking the lead to 7-4 early on.
A home run by catcher Jojo Santiago brought the Flames closer in the top of the fourth, but BG held the lead by a score of 7-6.
After 13 runs were scored in the first four innings, the remaining two and a half would go scoreless heading into the bottom of the seventh the Falcons have struggled mightily thanks to 3.2 scoreless innings by Anderson.
Two fantastic plays from Martin and shortstop Cameron Kaufman on a game-ending double play sealed the fate of the Falcons’ fourth win of the season in another close game that went right down to the wire.
Game Two: Bowling Green vs Indiana
The Hoosiers wasted no time in jumping ahead of a Falcon team that wasn’t able to carry the momentum from game one into game two, allowing a two-run home run to left fielder Taylor Minnick in the first and a grand slam from junior Avery Parker that was part of an eight-run entourage that put the Falcons out of the game from the start.
A three-run top of the fourth that included RBI hits from Kaufman and first baseman Taylor Behrendt brought the Hoosier lead to only five, earning seven hits, a number that fell only one short of the Indiana mark of eight.
A single by Parker off Anderson, who threw three scoreless innings before the bottom of the sixth, propelled the Hoosiers into a walk-off stolen base as Minnick came home on a wild pitch, handing Indiana an 11-3 victory in six innings.
The Falcons will be back in action on Saturday, March 8 for a tripleheader against IU Indy at noon, Indiana at 4 p.m., and UIC at 7:30 p.m.
