Ball State University Athletics
Softball Prepares For No. 15 Ohio State Wednesday On The Road
March 31, 2009 | Softball
MUNCIE, Ind. ? The Ball State softball team (13-14) heads to Columbus, Ohio for a mid-week double header against Ohio State Wednesday beginning at 5 p.m. Ball State swept a double header at Eastern Michigan in its last two games and split at Central Michigan prior to that for a 3-1 Mid-American Conference record.
The Cardinals are currently led in the circle by Elizabeth Milian, who boasts a 10-9 record with a 1.59 ERA. At the plate, Ball State features three players who are hitting .300 or better, with Alyssa Collins leading the way at .402. Collins is on an 11-game hitting streak and has tallied eight multi-hit games, including five in the last two games. Jen Reifschneider is the sole player to log a home run this season with a team and MAC-best seven home runs. She is just one shy of tying the single-season record.
Through 27 games, the Cardinals have stolen 46 bases with Lisa Rozanski leading the charge on a perfect 11-11 base attempts. Rozanski already owns the single-season record with 43 stolen bases last season. Allie Pennock has moved to second all-time for her 59 stolen bases in her time at Ball State. She has notched eight so far this year.
WHAT TO WATCH FOR
Head coach Craig Nicholson needs just six more wins for his 800th career victory. He currently has 71 at Ball State.
Milian looks for her 100th career appearance. She has appeared in 21 games this season and is fourth all-time time with 42 wins. She is also now tied for first with six career saves after her last game against Eastern Michigan Saturday.
ABOUT OHIO STATE
The No. 15 ranked Buckeyes (24-6) are the third Top 25 ranked team Ball State has faced this season. The Cardinals lost 15-3 at Georgia and to Florida Gulf Coast 6-5 after eight innings. Ohio State is led by Sam Marder who owns a .395 average with 30 hits, including 12 home runs. She earned Big Ten Player of the Week honors last week after she batted .455 with a 1.091 slugging average and .667 on-base percentage as the Buckeyes extended its winning streak to nine games. The team is now on a three-game winning streak after splitting with N.C. State and defeating conference opponent Iowa in two games.
SCHEDULE CHANGES
There have also been several changes to the 2009 Ball State softball schedule for the month of April. The single game scheduled for April 7 at IPFW will now be a doubleheader. Game time will still remain 3 p.m. The single game scheduled for April 22 at Indiana is also now a double header and begins at 3 p.m. The Cardinals have also added a double header at Morehead State April 21 which begins at 5 p.m.
Ball State will host Buffalo (0-2 in MAC) and Kent State (2-0 in MAC) this weekend at the BSU Softball Complex. The team faces Buffalo in a double header Friday beginning at 1 p.m. The Cardinals play Kent State 2 p.m. Saturday and 1 p.m. Sunday to finish out the weekend.
####
