The BG softball team split its four game Mid-American Conference stretch 2-2 this past weekend off a huge scoring day, including a grand slam this past Friday.
They won both games against The University of Buffalo and lost both games against Kent State University.
Overall, the Falcons were able to score 18 runs in one day in the two game match-up against Buffalo. In the first game, junior pitcher Jamie Kertes struck out seven Buffalo Bulls batters and played her fifth complete game this season. Her solid pitching only allowed one run in the game.
“In game one, Jamie threw well,” head coach Shannon Salsburg said. “She commanded the zone and forced them to hit her pitches. The team was solid behind her and we hit early and often.”
After freshman Chelsea Raker was able to walk in a run in the third inning, senior Erika Stratton was able to record two RBIs off of a two-out single into left field. The Bulls scored in the bottom half of the inning, pushing the score to 3-1.
The Falcons responded in the top of the fifth. Freshman Aspen Searle put herself into position after a hit to left field lead her to first base. Raker took advantage and hit to center field, recording another RBI and scoring Searle from first. Senior Katie Yoho added on to the score by scoring a two-run homer to give the Falcons a 6-1 advantage. The Bulls were never able to recover and the Falcons picked up the 6-1 win.
The second game of the day was a fight until the end in some high scoring action. The team recorded a season high 12 runs to pick up the hard fought win.
The first four batters in the game for the Falcons recorded a hit. Raker and Yoho lifted the team with RBIs early to take a 3-0 lead. Buffalo answered in the bottom half of the inning, scoring two runs.
In the top of the second inning Buffalo forced the Falcons to two early outs. That’s when Raker, Searle and Durham started by each recording singles to load the bases. Katie Yoho capitalized by hitting a grand slam over left field to give the team a 7-2 lead. The team also scored twice in the third, giving them their biggest lead of the game 9-2.
The Bulls came back in the bottom of the fourth with a six run inning to close the gap 9-8. The Falcons answered in the fifth behind another three runs, including another RBI from Yoho. Buffalo fought back but did not have enough to overcome the Falcons scoring. The team finished the game in a 12-11 win. Yoho recorded two homers and a career high seven RBIs in the game.
“Game two was a dogfight,” Salsburg said. “I am so proud of our hitters as we kept scoring and attacking every pitch the entire game.”
The team struggled the next two games against Kent State. In the first game Kent recorded eight hits while holding the Falcons to just two. The game was a shutout 8-0 which ended the game after five innings via run-rule.
The second game was a solid game for the Falcons offensively, but they were not able to get the job done on the defensive side. The team recorded nine hits, including two home runs. Yoho added to her RBI total in the game after scoring a three run homer in the top of the fifth.
The team lost the game defensively, giving up 10 runs on 11 hits. The Falcons also had six errors in the game, losing to Kent State 10-4. The loss drops the Falcons to 6-8 in the MAC and 20-23-1 overall.
The team will continue away play at Indiana-Purdue University Fort Wayne on Wednesday.
