First it was one game, then one turned into two and when two turned into three, there was no looking back as Ohio swept Eastern Michigan in its Mid-American Conference series.
The Bobcats (18-12, 6-0 MAC) have rolled behind steady pitching from the duo of Madi McCrady and Danielle Stiene, and an aggressive offense, starting with first baseman and lead-off hitter, Mikayla Cooper.
Friday
McCrady and Stiene started Games 1 and 2 of Friday’s double header, respectively, in 8-0 and 6-1 wins.
McCrady pitched her first shutout of the year in the first game. The freshman allowed just two hits on 26 at bats to shut out the Eagles, good for her best performance of the year thus far.
Though a full regulation game is seven innings, behind McCrady’s career-best performance, the Bobcats closed the first game out in six.
To help McCrady, Ohio’s offensive dominated. Eight players registered at least one hit.
MacKenzie Brunswick went 2-4 in Game One, which included a two-run double in the second inning and an RBI single in the fifth that put the Bobcats up 4-0.
Allie Englant, along with Cooper, hit a two-run double. Desirae Villanueva's RBI single helped seal Ohio’s victory in Game One.
Cooper’s offense continued in game two. She had an RBI single as well as a stolen base. Accustomed to hitting home runs as of late, the lead-off hitter went 4-5 in Friday’s doubleheader.
Defensively, Stiene pitched game two. Playing her fourth consecutive complete game, Stiene give up only four hits and one run in seven innings as she faced 26 batters. Stiene, who now is 11-6 on the year, continues to elevate her performance in the circle as the season deepens.
On March 27, Stiene gave up only one hit and no runs in a nonconference game against Pitt.
Saturday
The Bobcats ace pitching duo rested Saturday when Villanueva was in the circle for two innings. She gave up one hit and one run. Stiene came on in relief in the third inning. With her dominance in the circle as of late, an unusual performance ensued for the senior. Stiene gave up two hits and two earned runs in Saturday’s 4-3 win, despite throwing four strikeouts.
Offensively, Cooper hit a home run from her lead-off spot in the first inning.
Katie Yun hit a home run in the first inning as Ohio’s offense started strong early.
The Bobcats scoring stopped after an RBI single from junior Alex Day in the fourth inning.
On deck
Starting conference play 6-0 for the first time in program history, Ohio looks to continue its win streak when it hosts Kent State (17-13, 3-3 MAC) in a Tuesday doubleheader at Ohio Softball Field. First pitch is slated for 1 p.m.
