Ball State University
2-6
Texas
8-0
Dabkowski and Steinbach Combine to Guide Softball Past Houston
February 21, 2016 | Softball
HOUSTON, Texas. - - Senior shortstop Emily Dabkowski (Plainfield, Ind./South Putnam) drove in five runs and fell a single shy of the cycle, while senior pitcher Nicole Steinbach (Merrillville, Ind./Andrean) shut down the Houston offense as the Ball State softball team closed the second day of the Houston Hilton Plaza Invitational with a 10-0 (5) victory over the host Cougars Saturday evening.
After being limited to just one hit earlier in the day in an 8-0 (5) loss to No. 24 Texas, the Cardinals' (3-6) offense exploded for season-highs of 10 runs and 13 hits in the victory over Houston (5-2).
“It's a great feeling to finally get a quality win this weekend,” first-year head coach Megan Ciolli Bartlett said. “The offense made some excellent adjustments and we got production from both the top and bottom of the lineup. Nicole was efficient and precise on the mound. It was a great team effort. Hopefully we'll take this momentum into our last game tomorrow.”
Ball State wasted little time breaking onto the scoreboard in the victory over Houston, as a one-out single from freshman designated player Madison Lee (Cerritos, Calif./Cerritos) in the top of the first set up a two-out RBI triple from Dabkowski.
After a scoreless second inning, the Cardinals bats came to life in the third, sparked by a leadoff double from junior left fielder India Steward (Matteson, Ill./Rich South). Following the first out of the inning, Lee singled to right field to give Ball State runners on the corners. After a walk to junior center fielder Rachel Houck (Greenfield, Ind./Mt. Vernon), Dabkowski drove in two more runs with a double to left-center field.
Two batters later, sophomore left fielder Elise Sandberg (Mariette, Ga./Lassiter) drove in career RBI three and four with a two-run single to left field. The two-run play gave Ball State a 5-0 edge after two-and-a-half innings.
Ball State extended its lead to 9-0 with another four-run frame in the top of the fourth. Freshman Madeline Porter (Birmingham, Ala./Oak Mountain) opened the inning by reaching base on a Houston error. Two batters later, junior first baseman Amanda Arnett (Monroe, Mich./Monroe) brought in a pair of runs with her second home run of the season, and the fifth of her career.
After the second out of the inning, Houck doubled down the left field line to keep the Ball State rally alive. Dabkowski followed with her third extra base hit of the game and the 24th home run of her career, a two-run blast deep over the fence in right-center field. Dabkowski finished the game 3-for-3, with five RBI, two runs scored and fell a single shy of hitting for the cycle.
Ball State pushed the game's final run across the plate in the top of the fifth, when Porter made a heads up running play to score from second base on a two-out infield RBI single from Arnett.
In the circle, Steinbach turned in her best outing of the 2016 campaign, logging her first complete game shutout of the season and the 13th of her career. She allowed just five hits over 5.0 innings of work, while logging a pair of strikeouts and issuing just one walk. She also retired the Cougars in order in both the third and fourth innings after the Ball State offense tallied four runs in the top half of each inning.
Earlier in the day versus the 24th-ranked Longhorns (8-0), Arnett earned her first career start in the circle and limited the potent Texas offense to just three runs and three hits over 3.0 innings of work. She also struck out a pair of batters in the contest, while drawing a walk herself as a batter to open the bottom half of the first.
Houck was the only Ball State batter to record a hit in the game, slicing a single through the left side to give the Cardinals a pair of runners on base with one out in the bottom of the first. Unfortunately, Texas pitcher Tiarra Davis would retire the final 14 Ball State batters she face in the game.
Arnett would hold the Longhorns scoreless over the first 2.1 innings, before giving up a three-run home run with one out in the third. Texas would add five more runs off Ball State relief pitching in the fourth inning to give the game its final score of 8-0.
The Ball State softball team closes play in the Houston Hilton Plaza Invitational Sunday morning with a scheduled 9 a.m. CT first pitch versus Iowa State.
For the most up-to-date news on Ball State softball, follow the team on Twitter: @BallStateSB, @CoachCBartlett & @BallStateSports / Instagram: ballstatesb / Facebook: BallStateSoftball.
- BallStateSports.com –
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Davis, Tiarra (5-0)
L: Arnett, Amanda (0-1)
Batting:
2B: Stephens, Lindsey 1 ; Bardwell, Christina 1
HR: Hanzel, Kelli 1 ; Felix, Celina 1
RBI: Hanzel, Kelli 2 ; Stephens, Lindsey 1 ; Felix, Celina 3 ; Kern, Holly 1 ; McAllister, Taylor 1
SF: McAllister, Taylor 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Tunning, Devon 1 ; Hanzel, Kelli 1 ; Wong, Stephanie 1 ; Stephens, Lindsey 2 ; Felix, Celina 2 ; Davis, Tiarra 1
SB: Wong, Stephanie 1 ; Bardwell, Christina 1
HBP: Hanzel, Kelli 1 ; Bardwell, Christina 1 ; Shireman, Erin 1
