BGSU softball (6-17, 1-2) hosted the Green Bay Phoenix (6-12) (0-3) in a doubleheader on Tuesday, March 18 for their home opener at Meserve Field.
The Falcons took the win 6-1 in the first game but dropped the second 3-2. Still, this win was their seventh, giving them more wins through half of this season than all of last year.
“They’re competing hard,” said BGSU head coach Michelle Gardner. “We’ve just come up short sometimes here and there but I’m just really pleased because they’re just working hard. “We have the ability to do some really good things. We just got to keep competing and learning.”
The Orange and Brown halted their two-game losing streak against the Phoenix, who were also on a losing streak of four games coming into this matchup.
Here’s how things went down.
Game One:
Junior Mackenzie Krafcik would start the game pitching for BG while Green Bay started with Sophomore Ava Schill on the mound.
Green Bay started the game at the plate, going three up three down. BG redshirt freshman shortstop Addie Martin hit a one-out solo homer into left-center field to put the Falcons up 1-0 in the bottom of the first.
In the top of the second, Junior center fielder/shortstop Paige Hanson hit a double with one out for the Phoenix’s first hit of the ballgame. Freshman first baseman Evelyn Wolfgram got Hanson home using an RBI single to center field to tie things up 1-1.
To lead off the fourth inning Martin slammed another homer over the left field wall, but outside of her great 2-2 start, the Falcons could not get runs over the plate in the early going. The Orange and Brown ended the inning with one run on two hits and a 2-1 lead.
Bottom of the fourth and Martin again scored a run, this time through an RBI single. Good hitting and base running also allowed for another RBI single, this time by sophomore third baseman Taylor Behrendt, making the score 4-1.
The score would remain this way until the bottom of the sixth when the Falcons brought home two runners, stretching their lead to five runs with a score of 6-1 on two hits and a pair of walks in the inning.
The Falcons took the win in the first game of the home-opening doubleheader. Krafcik advanced to a 3-3 record on the year and is the first Falcon pitcher to throw for a complete game.
Second Game:
Starting pitchers for the second game of the doubleheader were senior Scarlet Anderson for BG and grad student Genesis Eggart for the Phoenix.
Shortstop Addie Martin, who went 4-4 in the last game at the plate, made a great snag to turn two. In her very next at-bat in the bottom of the first, she hustled and dove for a triple.
“[Addie] is a little hit or miss sometimes but she really did a good job today,” said Gardner when asked about Martin’s performance.
She did not miss very often today. Filling out the stat sheet Martin went 6-8 from the plate between the two games with 2 homers, one triple, three singles, and three RBIs.
On the very first pitch in the bottom of the second, BG sophomore outfielder Peyton Steffes smacked it into deep right field for a home run. The Falcons led 1-0 after two innings.
The game would continue to stay a 1-0 BG lead, with neither squad able to string hits together against these starting pitchers until the top of the sixth.
Green Bay would go on a two-out rally in the top of the sixth, taking a 3-1 lead over the Orange and Brown. Anderson would leave the game after giving up these runs, with freshman Morgan Beckham entering the contest and immediately striking out her first batter for the last out.
The Falcons battled back in the bottom of the seventh, scoring a run off a two-out RBI single by middle infielder Hannah Hunt, but came up short losing in the second game of the doubleheader against GBU 3-2.
Between the two games, BG pitchers only gave up four runs.
“We got good pitching today. We needed a good start and we got a good start. Scarlet and Max started out well, Morgan came in well,” said Gardner.
This BG squad is improving fast and has already surpassed their win total from last season.
“We were the underdog always, it’s not that way anymore,” said Gardner. “Some of these teams we’re playing, we should be the one coming out and dominating.”
Next up the Falcons will face off against the Kent State Golden Flashes in a weekend series that starts on Friday, March 21 at 3 p.m.
