Ball State came into the Radford Tournament looking for its luck to change on both sides of the ball.
By the last day of the tournament Sunday, the Cardinals luck had changed completely.
Finishing the Radford tournament with a 4-1 record and a tournament title, the Cardinals ended their five-game losing streak and received some much needed momentum going into the start of Mid-American Conference play in the next couple of weeks.
Senior shortstop Alicia Barkley said the key to the Cardinals success was their confidence at the plate and being able to drive in runs when the opportunity came.
"We had a lot more confidence this weekend than we did last weekend, and we just played better," Barkley said. "We just need to get the job done when it needs to be done, and I think we did a lot better job of that this weekend."
Ball State began play in the Radford Tournament Friday, when it defeated Delaware 11-3 in the afternoon and Georgetown 8-0 in the evening.
Barkley led the way offensively for Ball State, going 7-7 in the two games with three stolen bases, three runs scored, and an RBI.
"Some days you play better than others," Barkley said. "I think my approach stayed the same, pretty much on a consistent basis, but some days you go out and you see the ball a lot better and you go 7-7. That's just how it goes."
On Saturday, Ball State won its first game against Pittsburgh 2-1 while falling to Radford 4-3. Sophomore right-handed pitcher Audra Sanders picked up the win for the Cardinals against the Panthers, giving up five hits, one run, and striking out seven batters in seven innings of work. Junior right-hander Audrey Workman, on the other hand, struggled with her location against the Highlanders, giving up four runs and four walks in seven innings.
On Sunday, the Cardinals defeated the Colonials of Robert Morris in the early morning 6-2. Junior catcher and tournament MVP Amanda Montalto went 3-3 on the day with a triple and two RBIs to secure yet another win for the Cardinals and sophomore pitcher Audra Sanders, whose record moved to 9-6 on the season with the win.
Sanders said having a player like Montalto play so well this past weekend is important to the pitching staff and the pace of the game.
"It is amazing, and it means so much to us (pitching staff)," Sanders said. "Her home run in the third game, which was our first run, got us up ahead in the game and it just completely changed the momentum. Having a play like that happen pushes everything your way and then every one gets up and starts hitting after that."
Ball State Head Coach Craig Nicholson said even with the improvements in pitching and hitting this weekend as compared to last weekend, there is still room for improvement.
"I still feel like our approach at the plate needs to be a little more consistent," Nicholson said. "We need to work on getting good pitches to hit, and hitting hitter's pitches instead of pitcher's pitches. I think that and being sharper defensively are things that we still need to work on."
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