The Ball State softball team is set for a return to Mid-American Conference play. The team’s busy weekend will kick off at 1 p.m. Friday at Akron.
After a doubleheader against the Zips, the team will travel to Athens where they play Ohio on Saturday at 2 p.m., and again Sunday at 1 p.m.
The Cardinals are fresh off of a five-game home stand, in which Ball State had as many wins. Four of those came against Middle-American Conference opponents, pushing the team’s conference record to a perfect 8-0.
Most recently, Ball State defeated the non-conference Butler Bulldogs by a score of 11-2. With five home runs on the day, the Cardinals were offensively dominant.
Lauren Schroeder gave the team a pinch hit walk-off grand slam to win the game.
Solid pitching from freshman Kelsey Schifferdecker kept Butler at bay, as she gave up just four hits and two runs through four innings.
Akron competed against Butler on March 10, defeating the Bulldogs 2-1. Since then, the team’s longest win streak has been just two games.
Akron’s inconsistencies have brought them to an overall record of 16-17. The Zips are 3-5 in the MAC, and most recently split a double header with Toledo.
Despite their shaky record, head coach Craig Nicholson acknowledges that Akron is a solid ball club. Their ability to run, and be aggressive on base can make them dangerous.
“Life on the road in this conference is a little more challenging than playing at home,” Nicholson said. “I feel like we can score runs, we are just going to have to manage their opportunities to score.”
Ohio will be more dangerous as a pitching team.
Ohio pitcher Savannah Jo Dorsey is the reigning MAC East Pitcher of the Week. Despite pitching over 10 innings the freshman did not give up a single run.
“They’re gonna pitch pretty well, we’re gonna have to battle and make sure that we are disciplined at the plate,” Nicholson said.
The 19-16 Bobcats lost two games to Ohio State on Wednesday, and will take on Miami (Ohio) before hosting Ball State on Saturday.
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