Ohio (32-15 overall, 14-7 Mid-American Conference) is back at home this weekend for its final home series of the 2026 season against the hottest team in the MAC, the Akron Zips (27-21 overall, 17-4 MAC.)
This matchup is one of the biggest of the year for both teams because it’s two heavyweights battling in southeast Ohio as the season winds down. The Bobcats and Zips could very well see each other again later in May with more on the line.
If Akron can take two or more games in this series, it can start looking to wrap up first place in the conference, as the Zips are already up three games on second place with a few games remaining. This makes this important series even more important between these two top-tier teams.
These two teams are on a combined 10-series win streak, as they have the first and third-best conference records in the MAC. Out of those 10 series, 4 of them have been sweeps. Out of those 4 swept series, 3 of them come from Akron.
Akron is very familiar with being on the road, with over 77% of its games being outside of Akron. The Zips have been pretty good in away games with a 13-8 overall record, and 9-3 in Conference away games.
As for the Bobcats, they haven’t been in Athens very often, but when they are, they are dominant as they boast a very solid 8-3 home record.
Ohio’s dominant season has been built on a smothering offense. The Bobcats .336 team batting average puts them second in the MAC, as they have also hit the most home runs in the conference with 70.
Ohio’s one-two punch to open up its lineup has been a huge reason for its great offense. Lead off hitter senior Belle Hummel has been phenomenal at getting on base this season with her .476 batting average, which is second in the MAC. Then, senior Colleen Bare comes up, who has hit 13 home runs this season, which is tied for second in the MAC this year.
Akron has not dominated any stats necessarily, but it's very consistent at everything. The Zips have the sixth-best batting average in the MAC, the fourth-best ERA and the fifth-best fielding.
Akron’s junior infielder, Sophia Wygast, is 10th in the MAC in hits with 54. She’s also ninth in home runs with 10, which puts her at second in runs batted in with 52, only behind Ohio’s Shelby Westler, who is first with 55.
The Zips' offense is going to have to battle against Ohio’s ace pitcher Skipp Miller. After Miller's weekend against Kent State, she has moved into the top 10 in the MAC in earned run average (ERA). She is also fourth in strikeouts and first in wins with 17.
If Ohio’s starting pitchers can hold their own and allow the Bobcats offense to take over, they could easily take the series. If Akron’s offense rattles Ohio’s pitching early in the game before the Bobcats offense gets going, the Zips have a good chance.
