Ball State University
33-23
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Championship Game vs. No. 5 Western Michigan
25-26
MAC Tournament Champions, Softball Tops Western Michigan 11-3 (6)
May 09, 2015 | Softball
AKRON, Ohio - - After falling behind 2-0, the Ball State softball team's bats came to life and the Cardinals rallied for an 11-3 (6) win over Western Michigan Saturday afternoon to capture the 2015 Mid-American Conference Softball Championship Title at Firestone Stadium in Akron, Ohio.
With the win, the Cardinals (33-23) secure the league's automatic bid to the 2015 NCAA Softball Championships and will learn their NCAA fate Sunday, May 10th at 10 p.m. ET on ESPNU.
Saturday's tournament title is the third in program history, and the team's first since 2010. Ball State also won the MAC tournament title in 1998. In all three tournament runs, the Cardinals went a perfect 4-0.
“From my first day on the job, we have been talking about winning the MAC Tournament,” Ball State head coach Tyra Perry said. “We have had a really trying season, but our team stayed tough, stayed strong and persevered through it all to earn this moment. It takes every single person to win a championship, and we fed off each other this entire week. We have talked a lot about how this is the program's first MAC Tournament title since 2010, and now we are talking about doing something even more significant in the NCAA Tournament.
For her part in helping guide the Cardinals to the tournament crown, senior Hanne Stuedemann (Mattawan, Mich./Mattawan) was named the MAC Softball Tournament MVP. She was joined on the all-tournament team by teammates Nicole Steinbach (Merrillville, Ind./Andrean) and Emily Dabkowski (Plainfield, Ind./South Putnam).
In Saturday's championship game, Stuedemann went 3-for-4 from the plate and drove in four of Ball State's 11 runs. Stuedemann's biggest hit was a three-run home run in the bottom of the fifth to essentially put the game out of reach at 8-3.
While the Cardinals took home the title, it was Western Michigan (25-26) which started the game strong with back-to-back leadoff home runs in the first and second innings.
The Broncos' lead would not last long, however, as the Ball State offense came to life in the bottom of the second, scoring five runs to give the Cardinals' control of the contest. Stuedemann started the rally with a single up the middle, while two batters later junior first baseman Sammi Cowger (Fenton, Mich./Fenton) reached base on an error to give the Cardinals runners at the corners.
After Cowger stole second, sophomore third baseman Amanda Arnett (Monroe, Mich./Monroe) drew a five-pitch walk to load the bases. Sophomore catcher Shelbie Scamihorn (Terre Haute, Ind./South Vigo) followed with a two-run single through the left side to tie the game at 2-2. The fireworks were not done there, as sophomore center fielder India Steward (Matteson, Ill./Rich South/Western Kentucky) gave Ball State a 5-2 lead with her second career home run, a three-run blast to center field.
Western Michigan countered with an unearned run in the top of the third, and managed to get runners at second and third with two outs. However, a pickoff throw to second and a rundown on the player at third helped the Cardinals get out of the inning without any more damage.
After a scoreless fourth inning, the Cardinals added three more runs in the bottom of the fifth inning, thanks to Stuedemann's three-run blast to center field. Junior right fielder Selena Reyna (Houston, Texas/South Houston) opened the inning with a double down the left field line, while an infield single from senior left fielder Loren Cihlar (St. Charles, Ill./St. Charles North) gave Ball State runners on the corners. Two batters later, Stuedemann gave the Cardinals an 8-3 lead with her 27th career home run.
After Steinbach retired the side in order in the top of the sixth, the Cardinals rallied for three more runs in the bottom of the frame to end the game. Scamihorn opened the inning with a single to right-center field and advanced to second on a wild pitch. Two batters later, Reyna singled up the middle to drive in Scamihorn from second.
The hits continued, as Cihlar singled up the middle to give BSU a pair of base runners, while a deep fly from Dabkowski allowed Reyna to move to third. Stuedemann followed with her second RBI hit of the game, singling up the middle to make the score 10-3. Senior designated play Jessica Craft (LaPorte, Ind./LaPorte) then capped the game with a RBI double which was nearly caught by the WMU center fielder. However, she was unable to hold on to the ball and Cihlar came around to score and complete the run-rule victory.
In picking up her fourth pitching win of the tournament, Steinbach limited Western Michigan to four hits and three runs, only two of which were earned, over 6.0 innings of work. She also struck out one batter in the championship game.
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 (18-13)
L: KUS, Allyson (11-10)
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Batting:
3B: ROHN, Jenny 1
HR: SCHAAF, Ivy 1 ; CICHOCKI, Kelsea 1
RBI: SCHAAF, Ivy 1 ; ROHN, Jenny 1 ; CICHOCKI, Kelsea 1
SH: SANICKI, Taylor 1 ; CRAUN, Geordin 1
Base Running:
RUNS: SCHAAF, Ivy 2 ; CICHOCKI, Kelsea 1
CS: ROHN, Jenny 1
Batting:
2B: Reyna, Selena 1 ; Craft, Jessica 1
HR: Stuedemann, Hanne 1 ; Steward, India 1
RBI: Reyna, Selena 1 ; Stuedemann, Hanne 4 ; Craft, Jessica 1 ; Scamihorn, Shelbie 2 ; Steward, India 3
Base Running:
RUNS: Reyna, Selena 2 ; Cihlar, Loren 2 ; Stuedemann, Hanne 2 ; Cowger, Sammi 1 ; Arnett, Amanda 1 ; Scamihorn, Shelbie 1 ; Cooley, Taylor 1 ; Steward, India 1
SB: Cihlar, Loren 1 ; Dabkowski, Emily 1 ; Cowger, Sammi 1
