Friday, March 15
Macon, Ga.
1:30 p.m.
Ball State University
18-10
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7-12
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Ball State
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Photo by: David Huffman
Daniel’s First Career Home Run Lifts Softball Past South Dakota
March 16, 2019 | Softball
MACON, Ga.- - Freshman second baseman Amaia Daniel blasted her first career home run to break a 4-4 tie and help lead the Ball State softball team to a 10-4 victory over South Dakota to close the opening day of the Mercer Bears Classic Friday night at Sikes Field.
The Cardinals (19-10), who opened the tournament with a 4-3 loss to Fordham earlier in the day, jumped out to an early 4-0 lead in the nightcap versus the Coyotes (16-14) thanks to a four-run second inning.
Freshman right fielder Trinity Eckerty opened the scoring with an RBI double to left field to drive in junior center fielder Kennedy Wynn who reached on an error. Two batters later, Hailey Demnianiuk brought home Eckerty with a single to center, which was followed by a two-run home run from junior left fielder Haley Dominique.
However, South Dakota was able to counter with a single run in the third and a three-run home run in the fourth to even the score. With two outs and sophomore third baseman Stacy Payton at first in the top of the fifth, Daniel deposited the first pitch see saw deep over the fence in left field to give Ball State a 6-4 edge.
Freshman first baseman Mackenzie McCarty followed with her second home run of the day, and fourth of the season, while Payton added a three-run double in the top of the sixth to push the score to 10-4.
Freshman pitcher Sarah Venker earned the win in the circle, limiting South Dakota to three hits and four runs, only three of which were earned, over 4.0 innings of work. She also struck out four batters on her way to improving to 8-2 on the season.
Freshman pitcher Tieghan Morio threw the final three innings to pick up her first career save. She limited the Coyotes to just one hit and also struck out one of the 10 batters she faced.
In Friday's opening-game loss to the Rams (7-12), it was defensive miscues which hurt the Cardinals as five errors helped Fordham score four unearned runs.
The Rams opened the scoring with a run in the top of the fifth, but McCarty went yard on a 3-2 count to lead off the bottom of the inning and tie the score.
After a scoreless sixth, Fordham capitalized on another Ball State error to open the top of the seventh and pulled ahead 4-1.
The Cardinals would not go down without a fight, however, as Wynn singled to open the bottom of the seventh and moved to second on a two-out walk to senior catcher Madison Lee. Eckerty followed with her first RBI hit of the day, a pinch hit single to center field.
Trailing 4-2 with runners at second and third, Dominique grounded to short, but this time a Fordham error allowed a run to score and brought the Cardinals within one. Unfortunately, the Cardinals were not able to bring home the tying run as a strikeout ended the game.
Despite not giving up a single earned run, senior pitcher Aeshia Miles suffered the loss after limiting the Rams to just three hits and one walk over her 7.0 innings of work. She also struck out three.
The Ball State softball team continues play in the Mercer Bears Classic Saturday with games versus Cleveland State (11:15 a.m.) and the host Bears (3:45 p.m.).
For the most up-to-date news on Ball State softball, follow the team on Twitter: @BallStateSB, @CoachCBartlett & @BallStateSports / Instagram: ballstatesb / Facebook: BallStateSB.
The Cardinals (19-10), who opened the tournament with a 4-3 loss to Fordham earlier in the day, jumped out to an early 4-0 lead in the nightcap versus the Coyotes (16-14) thanks to a four-run second inning.
Freshman right fielder Trinity Eckerty opened the scoring with an RBI double to left field to drive in junior center fielder Kennedy Wynn who reached on an error. Two batters later, Hailey Demnianiuk brought home Eckerty with a single to center, which was followed by a two-run home run from junior left fielder Haley Dominique.
However, South Dakota was able to counter with a single run in the third and a three-run home run in the fourth to even the score. With two outs and sophomore third baseman Stacy Payton at first in the top of the fifth, Daniel deposited the first pitch see saw deep over the fence in left field to give Ball State a 6-4 edge.
Freshman first baseman Mackenzie McCarty followed with her second home run of the day, and fourth of the season, while Payton added a three-run double in the top of the sixth to push the score to 10-4.
Freshman pitcher Sarah Venker earned the win in the circle, limiting South Dakota to three hits and four runs, only three of which were earned, over 4.0 innings of work. She also struck out four batters on her way to improving to 8-2 on the season.
Freshman pitcher Tieghan Morio threw the final three innings to pick up her first career save. She limited the Coyotes to just one hit and also struck out one of the 10 batters she faced.
In Friday's opening-game loss to the Rams (7-12), it was defensive miscues which hurt the Cardinals as five errors helped Fordham score four unearned runs.
The Rams opened the scoring with a run in the top of the fifth, but McCarty went yard on a 3-2 count to lead off the bottom of the inning and tie the score.
After a scoreless sixth, Fordham capitalized on another Ball State error to open the top of the seventh and pulled ahead 4-1.
The Cardinals would not go down without a fight, however, as Wynn singled to open the bottom of the seventh and moved to second on a two-out walk to senior catcher Madison Lee. Eckerty followed with her first RBI hit of the day, a pinch hit single to center field.
Trailing 4-2 with runners at second and third, Dominique grounded to short, but this time a Fordham error allowed a run to score and brought the Cardinals within one. Unfortunately, the Cardinals were not able to bring home the tying run as a strikeout ended the game.
Despite not giving up a single earned run, senior pitcher Aeshia Miles suffered the loss after limiting the Rams to just three hits and one walk over her 7.0 innings of work. She also struck out three.
The Ball State softball team continues play in the Mercer Bears Classic Saturday with games versus Cleveland State (11:15 a.m.) and the host Bears (3:45 p.m.).
For the most up-to-date news on Ball State softball, follow the team on Twitter: @BallStateSB, @CoachCBartlett & @BallStateSports / Instagram: ballstatesb / Facebook: BallStateSB.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: MCGRATH, Makenzie (2-2)
L: Miles, Aeshia (5-6)
Batting:
3B: SKREPENAK, Chelsea 1
RBI: TRIVELPIECE, Maria 1 ; TAFFET, Sarah 1
Base Running:
RUNS: MARTINE, Julia 1 ; PINTO, Brianna 1 ; HUBERTUS, Rachel 1 ; TAFFET, Sarah 1
SB: TRIVELPIECE, Maria 1
Batting:
HR: McCarty, Mackenzie 1
RBI: McCarty, Mackenzie 1 ; Eckerty, Trinity 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Wynn, Kennedy 1 ; McCarty, Mackenzie 1 ; Janiga, Katie 1
SB: Manuel, Kim 1
Game Leaders
Hitting
AB
3
R
0
H
1
RBI
0
AB
3
R
1
H
1
RBI
0
AB
3
R
1
H
1
RBI
1
AB
1
R
0
H
1
RBI
0
Players Mentioned
Uti
/ Softball
INF
/ Softball
OF
/ Softball
INF
/ Softball
C
/ SoftballC/Uti
/ Softball
RHP
/ Softball
RHP
/ Softball
INF
/ Softball
RHP
/ SoftballINF/OF
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