Ball State University
Miami (OH)
Softball Drops Hard-Fought 1-0 Contest At Miami
May 02, 2015 | Softball
OXFORD, Ohio - - The Ball State softball team opened the final weekend of the Mid-American Conference season with a hard-fought 1-0 loss at Miami Saturday afternoon at the Miami University Softball Stadium.
The Cardinals (28-23, 13-5 MAC) and RedHawks (31-21, 13-6 MAC) close the regular season Sunday with a schedule 1 p.m. first pitch back at the MU Softball Stadium. The contest will determine the No. 2 seed in next week's league tournament, as Kent State (38-11, 16-4 MAC) locked up the No. 1 seed and regular season title with an 11-5 win over Northern Illinois this afternoon. The 2015 MAC Softball Championship will run May 6-9 at Firestone Stadium in Akron, Ohio.
In Saturday's loss, Ball State junior pitcher Nicole Steinbach (Merrillville, Ind./Andrean) opened the game with back-to-back strikeouts and kept the Miami offense off balance much of the day. Over six innings of work, Steinbach (13-13) limited the RedHawks to just four hits and a pair of walks, while striking out a four batters.
Unfortunately, Miami was able to score the game's lone run in the bottom of the third, capitalizing on a Ball State error and a RBI single from Eryn McCarver to pull ahead 1-0.
With two outs in the top of the fourth, the Cardinals looked poised to tie the score on a deep blast from senior right fielder Hanne Stuedemann (Mattawan, Mich./Mattawan), but the ball bounced off the top of the wall for a double. While senior designated player Jessica Craft (LaPorte, Ind./LaPorte) singled and sophomore catcher Shelbie Scamihorn (Terre Haute, Ind./South Vigo) was hit by a pitch to load the bases, a groundout ended the rally.
Ball State had one last chance to tie the game in the top of the seventh, as Scamihorn was hit by another pitch to open the inning. Junior first baseman Sammi Cowger (Fenton, Mich./Fenton) followed with a sacrifice bunt to move pinch runner Kirsten O'Conner (Muncie, Ind./Cowan/Evansville) to second. After a great diving catch by the Miami third baseman on a foul liner, sophomore pinch hitter Amanda Arnett (Monroe, Mich./Monroe) sliced what looked to be a game-tying double down the left field line. Unfortunately, the ball was foul by inches and a groundout ended the game.
Stuedemann led the Ball State offense with a pair of hits in the game, raising her team-leading batting average to .382.
Amber Logemann (26-9) picked up the pitching win for Miami, limiting the league's top offense to just four hits in a complete game victory.
For the most up-to-date news on Ball State softball, follow the team on Twitter: @BallStateSB and @TyraPerry13 / Instagram: ballstatesb / Facebook: BallStateSoftball.
- BallStateSports.com –
