Sitting in fourth place in the Mid-American Conference West Division at the start of Saturday, Ball State University entered a doubleheader against Miami University knowing they needed to get wins.
However, the Cardinals (12-22, 5-9 MAC) were unable to avoid the big inning against the Redhawks (19-28, 5-9) and got swept, losing game one 4-1 and game two 6-3.
"Today did not go well for us," coach Terri Laux said. "We lost two very important games but you have to give credit to Miami. They came out there with nothing to lose and swung the bat very well."
In the first game, pitcher Amanda Pick's 27 consecutive scoreless inning streak was snapped in the bottom of the fifth when Miami got four runs off three hits to take a commanding lead three-run lead.
The Cardinals' lone offense of the game came in the second inning when third baseman Taylor Yancey hit a solo home run.
Following this game, Miami was able to complete the sweep after scoring six runs in third inning off of freshman Laura Masch.
With these losses Ball State has now dropped into fifth place in the MAC West and are eight games behind division leader Western Michigan with two weeks remaining in the conference season.
"We made a point to tell our players that everyone is beating up on everyone and that on any given day a team can make a run," Laux said. "These were big games today but there are still eight games left and we just need to be consistent."
One of the biggest problems for the Cardinals was consistency. Despite managing 10 hits in the second game, Ball State could only get two hits in game one.
"We are going to have to be consistent with what we do with the bat," Laux said. "We are getting production but not consistently through our lineup. Today we had the bottom [of the order] do well and the top of the lineup didn't hit."
A large question remaining unanswered for the Cardinals may be the mental state of the team. After this weekend's sweep Ball State has now lost six of its last eight MAC games.
"Our approach and intensity level has to be consistent on a daily basis and I think that we are going to see how the team's psyche is in this week's games," Laux said. "I told them after the game that all is not lost and we just need to take care of our business."
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