After 19 tournament games, Ball State softball visited Johnson City, Tennessee yesterday to face East Tennessee State in the Cardinals’ first midweek series of the season.
“Midweek [games] are pretty challenging because everybody's fatigued from the past weekend, both mentally and physically,” Ball State graduate student Haley Wynn said. “We're on the road traveling a lot right now, so it also makes it very challenging.
“Midweeks are a test of who can show up and give all 100 percent of the 80 percent that they have. It's more about grit and who wants it more.”
Yet the change and challenges that came from a short break did not falter the white and red as they swept the two-game series. The first game at Betty Basler Field witnessed an all-around Ball State performance as the Cardinals (10-11) defeated the Buccaneers 6-0.
Ball State senior starting pitcher Francys King threw her third shutout of the season as she only allowed four hits from East Tennessee State (4-12). She also had a strikeout in the outing.
“She's been committed to not only being consistent in the circle but also changing [pitch] speeds,” Ball State head coach Helen Peña said. “One thing that we knew going into this season was that she was able to command a changeup. That's something that hitters who saw her last year would not expect.”
While King never allowed the Buccaneers to gain momentum, Ball State’s offense had no problem getting on base. The Cardinals finished the contest with five hits. Redshirt sophomore Jessica Hoffman led with two hits and redshirt junior McKayla Timmons added a three-run home run.
Going into game two, the Cardinals looked for those trends to continue. While the success in the circle returned, it also was on the Buccaneers’ side as well. The game was scoreless through the first four innings.
In the bottom of the fourth, the Buccaneers struck first with a solo shot. For the first time in the series, Ball State trailed. However, the Cardinals fired back in the top of the fifth with multiple hits and RBIs to take a 4-1 lead. Ball State sophomore starting pitcher Bridie Murphy rebounded after the solo shot and finished the game with three strikeouts and only allowed four hits.
“Not only have [our pitchers] given us a great start, they've been able to finish things,” Peña said. “I've told them from the very beginning that if someone is rolling with a team and they're not making adjustments at the plate, then we're going to challenge them.”
While she worked in the circle, Ball State’s offense attacked once more as the Cardinals scored four more runs in the top of the seventh. This gave the white and red the 8-1 victory.
Hoffman led the Cardinals with three hits on the day while Wynn recorded two. That puts her career total at 205 hits.
“It's really special [getting to 200 career hits] because it's everything that I've been working towards since I was even young playing softball,” Wynn said. “You don't realize how big of an accomplishment that is until it happens. It's just showing that all my hard work has paid off.”
The Cardinals look towards their last non-conference tournament of the season as they next compete in the Marshall March Madness event. The Cardinals will start the tournament Thursday, March 6, when the white and red face Marshall at 5 p.m.
While she believes that the Cardinals have grown tremendously, the first-year head coach wants to see the white and red end the 26-game road trip with confidence and success.
“To me, it's not about the skill of the resume, but it's about how we play together as a team,” Peña said. “If we focus on us, and we bring our energy and we compete one pitch at a time, then we're doing a good job.”
Contact Zach Carter with comments at zachary.carter@bsu.edu or on X @ZachCarter85.
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