Ohio (32-17, 14-9 Mid-American Conference) lost both of its games against Akron (29-21, 19-4 MAC) on Friday’s doubleheader. It was a tough day for the Bobcat batters. Not much happened, and Akron only needed two pitchers to completely take out Ohio. With a team that is usually high scoring, the Bobcats only managed to put up 7 total runs throughout both games.
“We could have stayed disciplined, we played into their game all day at the plate and we chased up in the zone," Ohio's coach Jenna Hall said. “We knew what we were supposed to be looking for and we fell into their pitching plan.”
Ohio’s usual big playmakers struggled against this top ranked Akron team, with Belle Hummel noticeably not getting a single hit in the first game of the series, which is very unlike her as she is second in the MAC in individual batting percentage.
“Every hitter is allowed to have a day or two,“ Hall said. “We’ve got too many good people in this lineup for this team to rely on one person and she’ll bounce back tomorrow.”
The first inning was a stalemate for both teams. Neither could manage a run, and it looked to be a low scoring game. Batting was not fully there for either side. The tale of two pitchers was the story of the first game, with Ohio’s Skipp Miller dueling Akron’s Madie Jamrog for who could get more outs.
"Jamrog, she throws a really nice spin pitch," Hall said. “She locates super well also. I think she is in control of her pitches most of the time.”
The first run of the game would arrive for Akron, with Lily Sulivan hitting a home run to take the lead against Ohio. The Bobcats struggled this season when other teams take the lead first, but Ohio calmly answered with a home run back. The Bobcat blast happened in the bottom of the sixth inning, as many more scoreless innings for both teams happened beforehand. Izzie Wilson scored along with batting in fellow Bobcat Shelby Westler.
Going into the top of the seventh inning, Ohio had a 2-1 lead and just needed to hold on for one inning to win. Akron proved to be too much though as it managed to tie the game with a run from Haley Glass. This was followed up with two more runners batted in by Sophia Wygast to up the score to 4-2. Ohio flailed in the bottom of the fourth inning and Akron won the first game with a final score of 4-2.
The second game was the same story as the first but with a lot more scoring from both teams. Once again Akron managed to go up first with runs from Wygast and Meagan Lee to gain control early on. Ohio responded well in the bottom of the first inning. The Bobcats managed two runs of their own. Hummel and Colleen Bare both scored to tie the game up and it started to look more competitive.
After a scoreless second inning from both teams, Akron scored a run and also hit a homer, which brought another run in. Ohio managed one run in this inning, which came from Kylie Gorsuch. Ohio was not able to keep up to pace with Akron and this showed in the next inning.
“We swung at ones she wanted, not the ones that were through the zone," Hall said.
Akron batted in two more runners in the fourth along with a separate run later on in the inning. Ohio tried numerous different pitchers in this second game, but Akron saw the ball well for most of the pitches and having its way at home plate.
“Akron is a great hitting team so we’re trying to keep people off balance,“ Hall said. “I thought Allie Myers did a really nice job coming in and attacking those hitters and keeping them at bay. It’s great to see her give us good innings.”
Bare scored once again, and Brenna Farmer added another run in the bottom of the fourth inning to bring the game within three. The last score of the game came from Akron in the fifth inning. This put a cap on the game as Akron managed to hold out and thus complete a series victory.
“Our body language has to improve, our fight has to improve, and just our team concept,“ Hall said. “I think if we come together as a team and have some more fight and stay focused on the bigger picture, it’ll help us come through at least competitive to the end.”
