Ball State University Athletics
Softball Hosts Dayton in Thursday Doubleheader
March 23, 2011 | Softball
MUNCIE, Ind. - The Ball State softball opens the home portion of the 2011 schedule in a doubleheader versus Dayton at the BSU Softball Complex, beginning at 3 p.m. Thursday.
LAST TIME OUT: Ball State took a 6-2 contest from Robert Morris Sunday morning in Botetourt, Va. to close the Radford Invitational. Ball State outhit its opponent, 8-6, and the squad committed one error versus its opponents' three. With the victory against the Colonials, the Cardinals improved to 15-11 overall.
Ball State Softball had three players named to the Radford Invitational All-Tournament Team for their performances in the three-day event. Junior catcher Amanda Montalto (Las Vegas, Nev./Palo Verde) earned MVP honors and joined sophomore pitcher Audra Sanders (Lynnville, Ind./Tecumseh) and senior shortstop Alicia Barkley (Oklahoma City, Okla./Putnam City) on the all-tournament team.
SCOUTING THE CARDINALS: As a team, Ball State owns a .315 batting average, while its opponents are batting .276, in addition to scoring 124 runs (4.8 runs/game), while allowing 103 runs (4.0 runs/game).
Barkley leads the Cardinals offensively with a .429 batting average, in addition to five doubles and a team-leading two triples. Barkley, an exercise science major, has also driven in seven runs and owns a team-high 11 stolen bases. Freshman third baseman Audrey Bickel (Munster, Ind./Andrean) ranks second on the squad and first among the freshman class with a .360 batting average, including seven doubles, one home run and 14 RBI.
From the circle, Sanders leads the team in 17 appearances with a 2.97 ERA in 92.0 innings, while junior Kim Mazzapica (Palm Harbor, Fla./East Lake) has made 11 appearances and owns a 1-1 mark on the season with a 3.00 ERA in 28.0 innings of work. Junior Audrey Workman (Wickenburg, Ariz./Wickenburg) owns a 4.41 ERA in 47.2 innings pitched, in addition to a 5-4 record with 12 appearances.
SCOUTING THE FLYERS: Thursday's matchups mark the sixth and seventh times Ball State and Dayton will meet, as the Cardinals own the 5-0 series advantage. The two squads last met during the 2010 season when Ball State took both contests of a doubleheader in Dayton, Ohio, as Montalto used a pair of home runs on the day to aid the Cardinals in defeating the Flyers, 7-2 and 5-0.
Dayton owns a 10-10 overall record before its midweek doubleheader with Wright State at UD Softball Stadium and its matchups with Ball State at the BSU Softball Complex Thursday. Infielder Lauren Nacke, a native of Greenwood, Ind., leads the Flyers' charge, batting 20-for-56, including three doubles, six home runs, 20 RBI and a .732 slugging percentage. Pitcher Sarah Wedel, from Salina, Kan., has made 12 appearances and owns a 3-4 record on the season, with a 3.29 ERA in 51.0 innings of work.
MONTALTO, SANDERS CLAIM MAC HONORS: Montalto and Sanders have earned Mid-American Conference West Division Player and Pitcher honors, the league office announced Tuesday. On the weekend, Montalto batted .500, recorded four runs, seven RBI, one doubles, one triple, two home runs and an astonishing 1.250 slugging percentage. The physical education major paces the squad with a .727 slugging percentage and five home runs on the season.
Sanders tallied a perfect 3-0 mark during tournament play with a 1.47 ERA, pitching 19.0 innings and allowing for 15 hits and six walks, in addition to recording 13 strikeouts in wins against Delaware, Pittsburgh and Robert Morris. The pre-medicine major has made 17 appearances and owns a 9-6 mark on the season with a 2.97 ERA in 92.0 innings.
COMING UP FOR THE CARDINALS: The Cardinals return to action this weekend at the Miami Tournament in Oxford, Ohio. Ball State begins with contests Saturday versus Toledo and Marshall at 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. and will complete play in the tournament Sunday against Marshall and Purdue at 1 and 3 p.m.
Live stats will be available on BallStateSports.com and inning-by-inning updates provided by @BallStateSoftball on Twitter.
