Having already earned seven Mid-American Conference individual accolades since the beginning of the season, Ohio finally will display its talents to the conference when MAC play begins this weekend against Kent State and Buffalo.
The Bobcats (15-10) will play doubleheaders as the road team against both teams, but because of poor field conditions, Ohio will play host to the Golden Flashes on Friday.
This past weekend, Ohio swept a pair of games against Canisius for the Bobcats’ first doubleheader sweep of the same team this season. Led by four home runs, Ohio displayed its ability to win games by recording big hits, backed by solid pitching.
Much of the same will have to continue this weekend, when Ohio coach Jodi Hermanek looks to continue her conference success. She has won at least 12 MAC games in each of the past three seasons.
“I’m excited for (MAC play) and Kent is one of our biggest rivals,” Hermanek said. “It’s time to begin play, but will also be a tough competition weekend. We just need to go out and play like we practice.”
Kent State (9-11) has played just two games since March 10, both of which were played Saturday. The Golden Flashes defeated Radford, before falling to Binghamton at the Radford Invitational.
Sophomore outfielder Kim Kirkpatrick leads Kent State offensively with team-highs in hits (19), slugging percentage (.467) and home runs (two).
However, the Flashes as a whole have not achieved much offensive success.
Kent State has hit just three home runs and is only averaging three runs per game, while Ohio has hit 36 home runs and has scored more than five runs per game.
The Flashes have been successful from inside the circle, paced by sophomore pitcher Emma Johnson. She has posted an ERA of 1.87 in 78 2/3 innings pitched, while also striking out 82 batters.
This past year, Ohio swept a doubleheader against Kent State in Athens, but the Flashes ousted the Bobcats in the MAC Tournament 9-5.
“We are ready to be in front of our own crowd more,” Hermanek said. “It takes a big load off of us without having to travel and spend time on the road.”
Because of the change of location, Ohio will have less than 24 hours to travel to Buffalo, before beginning another doubleheader Saturday.
The Bulls (5-17) also haven’t played much lately, with their last game coming March 17. Buffalo has won just one of its past five games overall.
Buffalo is averaging more than two runs per game this season, led by sophomore catcher Alexis Curtiss, who has a team-high .348 average and 24 hits.
Ohio has won its past eight meetings with Buffalo, including a pair of victories this past season when the Bobcats outscored the Bulls 19-3.
“We know that we are playing to be the best team in the MAC and there’s a lot of pride to be the best team in Ohio, as far as the conference is concerned,” Hermanek said.
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