Young pitchers, big bats shine in Ball State Softball's fall opener
By Evan Weaver / September 6, 2019Relaxed. That was the word freshman pitcher Deborah Jones used when describing Ball State’s victory to open the fall season against Huntington.
Relaxed. That was the word freshman pitcher Deborah Jones used when describing Ball State’s victory to open the fall season against Huntington.
Ball State (34-20) fell to Kent State University (26-23) 4-1 over a span of two days at Firestone Stadium, putting an end to the Cardinals' season.
Ball State Cardinals (34-18, 9-8 MAC) fell to Ohio University Bobcats (31-19, 12-8 MAC) in eight innings 3-2 at Firestone Stadium in Akron, Ohio, kicking off the Mid-American Conference softball championship.
While Ball State students in Muncie celebrated their spring commencement this morning, Cardinals in Fort Wayne, Indiana, put up a show of their own.
To start its final Mid-American Conference series of the season, Ball State (32-17, 9-7 MAC) split a Friday doubleheader with Central Michigan (19-24-1, 9-7-1 MAC) before falling in game three Saturday in Mount Pleasant.
While Rothwell would pick up another career save, the Cardinals will split their double header to the Rockets.
In the weekend slugfest, it was Ball State Softball that would walk away with a 2-1 series victory over Western Michigan.
Ball State (27-14, 5-4 MAC) lost the third and final game against Northern Illinois (18-20, 5-6 MAC) Wednesday in a 4-2 game, giving the Huskies a 2-1 series win on the season.
Ball State (27-13, 5-3 MAC) took one out of two close games to avoid a sweep against Bowling Green (15-20, 3-7 MAC) at home Saturday.
After falling to Bowling Green (14-19, 2-6 MAC) in the first game of the weekend series today 4-1, Ball State Softball (26-12, 4-2 MAC) is now 1-2 in the first game of a MAC series this season.
After Northern Illinois (16-18, 3-4 MAC) held off a Cardinal comeback in the first game for the 7-6 victory, Ball State Softball (26-11, 4-1 MAC) stormed back in the second game to defeat the Huskies 7-5 and split the doubleheader.
From freshman to seniors, every player has played some sort of role into the Cardinals success this season. The freshman class alone has accounted for 57 runs and eight home runs this season.
Ball State Softball (25-10, 3-0 MAC) proved to be the dominate team from start to finish in their double header against Akron (6-14-2, 0-3 MAC), picking up 13-1 and 9-1 wins over the Zips on Saturday.
Ball State Softball (23-10, 1-0 MAC) pull out the eight-run rule for a 14-6 victory over the Zips. Sophomore Stacy Payton highlighted the win, batting in five over the course of six innings.
Winning 10 of their last 11, Ball State Softball (22-10, 0-0 MAC) had another strong showing this weekend at Mercer Bears Classic, picking up four more wins and outscoring their opposition 40-19.
Ball State Softball (18-9, 0-0 MAC) found that spark to ignite a six game win streak taking down the likes of Bethune Cookman (twice), Cleveland State, North Florida, Georgetown, North Florida and Presbyterian.
After a near-sweep of the Silicon Valley Classic last weekend, Ball State (12-9, 0-0 MAC) suffered a 1-4 record at the USF-Clearwater Parks and Recreational Invitational, snagging its lone victory against Furman Saturday.
Seven straight scores from Iowa (11-8, 0-0 Big 10) in the fifth inning and a breakdown in the circle would hand Ball State (12-9, 0-0 MAC) a 10-3 loss, capping off a 1-4 finish in Clearwater, Florida this weekend.
Big weekend for Cardinal athletics as gymnastics, softball and many more picked up big wins on the road and in Muncie. Here's your weekend recap.
After going 4-2 at the Madeira Beach Invitational, Ball State Softball heads to sunny California to take on five opponents from the West.
