Softball returns home for 3 game series against Buffalo

<p>Softball kicks off MAC play this weekend against Miami</p>

Softball kicks off MAC play this weekend against Miami

Weekend Schedule:

Friday, April 8 - vs Buffalo 3:00 p.m.

Saturday, April 9 - vs Buffalo 1:00 p.m.

                    vs Buffalo 3:00 p.m.


Ball State swept Ohio in three straight games last weekend, before it went on the road for a midweek clash against the MAC West Division leaders, Northern Illinois. They were routed 10-0 in the first game and lost in walk-off fashion in the second, coming from a solo home run from reigning MAC West Player of the Week, NIU’s senior catcher Emily Naegele, in the seventh inning.

Head coach Megan Ciolli Bartlett said the team will focus on its pitching this weekend, a facet Ball State has excelled at this season behind senior pitcher Nicole Steinbach. 

“We gotta be tougher on the mound,” Bartlett said. "If you’re not tough to beat on the mound, then you’re gonna be in trouble.”

The Cardinals are not new to bouncing back from large margin losses. This season, 11 of their 20 losses have come by six runs or more.

“They’ve done a good job bouncing back from one-sided losses and keeping their heads,” Bartlett said.

Those two losses have pushed Ball State back to fourth in the MAC West Division behind Toledo, Western Michigan and Northern Illinois.

This weekend, April 8-9, Buffalo comes to Muncie for a three-game series, and will follow up April 13 with another game against Northern Illinois.

The return back to Muncie is a welcome sight Bartlett said.

“We’re very excited,” she said. “Playing in front of the home crowd always brings energy, and it’s definitely a place we can use to our advantage.”

The series kicks off on Friday, April 8 at 3 p.m. Games two and three are on Saturday, April 9 at 1 and 3 p.m.

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