After splitting two series with Indiana Purdue-Fort Wayne and Toledo over the weekend, Ball State's softball team travels to Ohio for a showdown with Mid-American Conference rival Kent State today.
Kent State (21-15 , 10-3 MAC) is in first place in the MAC East Division, trying to hold off an Ohio Bobcats squad that's on a five-game winning streak. The Golden Flashes defeated Toledo twice in a non-league doubleheader last Friday to extend their winning streak to seven games.
Meanwhile, the Cardinals (14-31 overall, 6-9 MAC), currently in fourth place in the West Division, continue to struggle heading into their doubleheader with Kent State. Kris Burdine continues to lead the team in hitting with a .333 batting average, good for 15th in the MAC and .469 slugging percentage.
Quincy Duran leads the team with a 2.11 ERA, while Randi Freese leads the team in wins and losses with a 6-13 record on the season.
Ball State has had to shift its lineup around throughout the season, including over the weekend when first baseman Jodi Willis was unavailable due to an aggravated back problem. Sarah McGregor stepped in for Willis and scored three runs on three hits over the weekend.
Willis is doubtful for the remainder of the season. Despite different lineups almost every game, coach Terri Laux said players playing different positions shouldn't be a problem.
"It shouldn't change a whole lot just because everyone has played those spots out there before. You always like to keep that consistency factor, but they've played how many games now?" she said.
The Cardinals continued to make defensive mistakes over the weekend, including five errors in the second game against IPFW. Laux said the errors were made because of lack of communication, but she was otherwise was pleased with how her team played defensively.
"We just kinda sat back thinking we'll be all right. We have to keep that aggressive mentality through the full seven innings, regardless of the score," Laux said.
Ball State's game with Purdue, which has been postponed twice, will not be made up because of scheduling conflicts. After facing Kent State, the Cardinals entertain the top West Division team, Central Michigan, once on Friday, then in a doubleheader on Saturday.
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