Ohio returns from its two series road trip to face off against Bowling Green in its continuation of Mid-American Conference play. This series looks to be a break for the Bobcats, as Bowling Green is toward the bottom of the MAC standings.
Ohio (26-14, 9-6 MAC) is coming off of two big wins against Miami, along with a loss, that tied the two teams at 9-6 in conference play. Ohio has continued to be a strong batting team and Belle Hummel is second in the MAC in hitting percentage with a whopping .463 batting average.
Ohio’s pitching strategy was once again very noticeable against Miami and will most likely be used against Bowling Green. Having three serviceable pitchers has been amazing for the team, as head coach Jenna Hall has been able to counter lots of things thrown at her from opposing teams.
Bowling Green (16-20, 4-11 MAC) has been struggling this year. The team has less wins than losses and currently sit at second to last in the conference. The Falcons have not won a MAC series at all this year, stealing one game away most of the time.
Bowling Green has also only played one team, Central Michigan, with a top five record in the MAC. The Falcons won the first game with a score of 1-0 but floundered out the rest of the series. These three games against Ohio will prove if Bowling Green has enough juice in the tank to turn around the season.
Game Information:
Opponent: Bowling Green
Times: Saturday 1 p.m. and 3 p.m., Sunday 12 p.m.
Location: Ohio Softball Field, Athens, Ohio
Where to watch: ESPN+
Get to know the opponent:
Head Coach: Michelle Gardner (second season)
Statistical leaders:
Batting average: Taylor Behrendt (.319)
Hits: Behrendt (36)
Home runs: Addie Martin (8)
RBIs: Martin (29)
Innings Pitched: Mackenzie Krafcik (94.2)
Strikeouts: Krafcik (46)
ERA: Krafcik (3.11)
Bowling Green notes:
Bowling Green has been one of the worst MAC squads at batting this season, having a team batting average of .269. The Falcons also do not have a single batter in the top 30 of batting average within the MAC conference.
The team’s fielding isn’t the best either, with 48 errors on the season. Bowling Green does have solid pitching as a team, boasting a team wide 4.55 ERA. Overall, Bowling Green struggles in every aspect besides pitching, in which it is a bit above average in the MAC.
Bowling Green player to watch:
Pitcher Mackenzie Krafcik has been the go-to pitcher for Bowling Green this season, playing in over 90 innings. Krafcik is in the top 10 for ERA in the conference and she is often Bowling Green’s main pitcher. She also has a win-loss percentage of .533, which is the highest among Bowling Green’s three pitchers.
Historically this season, Krafcik has held batters to a .290 batting average, which ranks second on this Falcons team after Morgan Beckham, who in a smaller sample size holds batters to .243.
This will be a tricky game for Krafcik and the Falcons pitching committee though, as Ohio has been one of the better batting teams in the MAC and has eight batters hitting over .300. The Bobcats also lead the MAC in home runs with 53. The game will likely fall on the pitchers to prevent the offensive powerhouse from even getting started.
