Ball State University
29-23, 14-5
Miami (OH)
31-22, 13-7
Softball Wins Wild One At Miami To Close Regular Season
May 03, 2015 | Softball
OXFORD, Ohio - - In a game which saw just about everything, it was a pinch hit grand slam from sophomore utility player Amanda Arnett (Monroe, Mich./Monroe) which turned the tide for the Ball State softball team in a thrilling 7-6 victory over Miami to close the regular season Sunday at MU Softball Stadium.
With the win, the Cardinals (29-23, 14-5 Mid-American Conference) secured the No. 2 seed in next week's MAC Softball Championship and will face No. 7 seeded Akron (24-24, 9-10 MAC) in the 3:30 p.m. contest Wednesday at Firestone Stadium in Akron, Ohio.
“We did what we had to do to win today,” Ball State head coach Tyra Perry said. “We saw some outstanding things from Hanne, while Kelsey did an excellent job managing the game. Nicole also came in strong and confident to finish off the win. I am also proud of Amanda for coming up with a key hit today, her first career grand slam. She just missed tying yesterday's game with a ball which landed foul by inches, but didn't let that missed opportunity get to her and came up with an even bigger hit today.”
Overall, the Cardinals pounded out nine hits in Sunday's win over the RedHawks (31-22, 13-7 MAC), with three coming from junior first baseman Sammi Cowger (Fenton, Mich./Fenton). Cowger, who drove in what proved to be the game-winning run with a RBI double in the seventh, was also hit by a pitch to finish the game 3-for-3 with one RBI and a run scored.
Senior right fielder Hanne Stuedemann (Mattawan, Mich./Mattawan) and junior shortstop Selena Reyna (Houston, Texas/South Houston) also collected a pair of hits each, including Reyna's 10th home run of the year.
“There were a lot of positives from today's game and I am looking for us to catch our stride in the tournament,” Perry continued. “We are starting to believe in ourselves and believe in what we can do.”
Miami opened the scoring with a pair of runs in the top of the first on back-to-back RBI singles from Taylor Shuey and Megan Mattera. Reyna was able to cut the lead in half, however, with a leadoff home run deep over the center field wall in the top of third.
The RedHawks countered with a two-out, two-run single from Bree Lipscomb in the bottom of the third to pull ahead by three at 4-1. Ball State looked poised to respond in the top of the fourth, loading the bases with two outs, but a groundout ended the threat.
The Cardinals would not be kept off the board much longer, however, as they rallied for five runs in the top of the fifth to take a 6-4 advantage. Junior second baseman Emily Dabkowski (Plainfield, Ind./South Putnam) and Stuedemann opened the inning with back-to-back singles, while a Miami error on a grounder from sophomore catcher Shelbie Scamihorn (Terre Haute, Ind./South Vigo) allowed Dabkowski to score from second. After Cowger was hit by a pitch to load the bases, Arnett became the fifth different Ball State player to hit a grand slam this season with a blast over the left-center field wall.
Miami would not let its senior day celebration slip away easily, however, capitalizing on two hits and a Ball State error in the bottom of the sixth to bring in a pair of runs to tie the score. The RedHawks even tried to push the go-ahead run across in the rally, but Stuedemann came up with a perfect throw home on a RBI single from Remy Edwards, while Scamihorn successfully tagged the Miami runner out at the plate who tried to score from second.
With the game tied at 6-6, Scamihorn was hit by a pitch to open the seventh inning, and sophomore pinch runner Taylor Cooley (Chelsea, Mich./Chelsea) made the RedHawks pay by scoring from first on a double by Cowger which split the Miami defense in left-center field.
The RedHawks had one more chance to rally in the bottom of the seventh, but a spectacular catch from Stuedemann in right field robbed Miami of a sure double for the second out of the inning. After a single, which would have driven in the tying run had it not been for Stuedemann, junior pitcher Nicole Steinbach (Merrillville, Ind./Andrean) induced a game-ending pop fly to give the Cardinals a 7-6 victory.
Steinbach earned the win after a solid 2.0 innings of relief work, limiting the RedHawks to two hits to improve to 14-13 on the year. Junior Kelsey Schifferdecker (Belton, Mo./Belton) started the game in the circle for Ball State, holding the RedHawks to seven hits and six runs, only four of which were earned, over 5.0 innings of work.
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 –
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Steinbach, Nicole (14-13)
L: FREDERICKS, Kelsey (1-2)
Batting:
2B: Cowger, Sammi 1
HR: Reyna, Selena 1 ; Arnett, Amanda 1
RBI: Reyna, Selena 1 ; Cowger, Sammi 1 ; Arnett, Amanda 4
Base Running:
RUNS: Reyna, Selena 1 ; Dabkowski, Emily 1 ; Stuedemann, Hanne 1 ; Scamihorn, Shelbie 1 ; Cooley, Taylor 1 ; Cowger, Sammi 1 ; Arnett, Amanda 1
SB: Arnett, Amanda 1
HBP: Cowger, Sammi 1
Batting:
2B: EDWARDS, Remy 1 ; LIPSCOMB, Bree 1
RBI: EDWARDS, Remy 1 ; SHUEY, Taylor 1 ; MATTERA, Megan 1 ; LIPSCOMB, Bree 2
SH: McINTYRE, Shanyn 1 ; McCHESNEY, Kylie 1
Base Running:
RUNS: McCARVER, Eryn 2 ; McINTYRE, Shanyn 1 ; SHUEY, Taylor 1 ; LIPSCOMB, Bree 1 ; BUSBY, Tanya 1
HBP: McCARVER, Eryn 1
PO: EDWARDS, Remy 1
