Rothwell; Big Fifth Leads Softball Past UAPB

LAFAYETTE, La. - - After starting the first two games of the season, Ball State softball senior pitcher Alyssa Rothwell entered Sunday's 8-2 (6) victory over Arkansas-Pine Bluff in a more familiar place; a key situation late in the game.

The Golden Lions (0-5) had just scored the first two runs of the weekend finale with two outs in the third, and had the Cardinals (2-3) on the ropes with bases load.

Much as she has done throughout her career, Rothwell entered the circle and did not waiver; striking out the first batter she faced on four pitches to limit the damage to two runs. She controlled the UAPB offense from there, striking out eight of the 12 batters she faced to pick up her first win of the season.

After being limited to two hits over the first three innings, the Ball State offense started to find its grove in the fourth, beginning with a one-out single by senior first baseman Janae Hogg. With sophomore pinch runner Becca Clanton at first, sophomore right fielder Trinity Eckerty came up with BSU's first big hit of the game, blasting a single off the wall in right field.

The play moved Clanton to third, while Eckerty advance an extra base on the throw. In the next at bat, junior catcher Delanie Johnson cut the UAPB lead in half with the first RBI of her Ball State career on a sac fly to right field.

After Rothwell retired Arkansas-Pine Bluff in order in the top of the fifth, the floodgates opened, and the Ball State offense produced its biggest inning of the young season with seven runs. Freshman center fielder Shelby Westbrook started the rally with her first collegiate hit, and after stealing second, scored the tying run on an RBI double from sophomore second baseman Amaia Daniel.

Junior third baseman Stacy Payton followed with her second home run of the season, a two-run blast to left field to push across what proved to be the game-winning run. After a double from senior left fielder Haley Dominique, the Cardinals used a combination of passed balls, wild pitches and bases-loaded walks to score the final four runs of the game.

SUNDAY NOTES:
- Sunday's game versus Arkansas-Pine Bluff was stopped following the conclusion of the sixth inning as Ball State had a two-hour drop dead time due to travel restrictions.

- After a hit batter to open the game, the Ball State defense came up with an unconventional double play, as sophomore pitcher Tieghan Morio struck out the next batter and junior catcher Delanie Johnson was able to pick the runner at first. It was Johnson's second pick off of the season, as she also picked off a runner Saturday vs. Prairie View A&M.

- Delanie Johnson also recorded her first double for the Cardinals in the second inning. A transfer from Lake Land College, Johnson logged 48 doubles over her two-year stint with the Lakers.

- After registering her 100th career RBI with her two-run homer Saturday against Prairie View A&M, senior first baseman Janae Hogg added her 101st RBI in Sunday's win over UAPB … The total is two behind Selena Reyna's (2013-16) mark of 103 for 10th in program history … Interestingly enough, Reyna was in attendance to watch Saturday's win over the Panthers.

- Senior left fielder Haley Dominique led the Ball State offense with eight hits and eight runs scored over opening weekend … She finished the five games with a .400 (8-for-20) batting average and collected three RBI.

- Junior Stacy Payton was second on the team with six hits, including two of Ball State's five home runs on the weekend … She also drew a pair of walks and was hit by a pitch twice for a team-leading .550 on base percentage.

- After seeing only 32.1 innings of work over 26 appearances last season, senior pitcher Alyssa Rothwell has already thrown 10.1 over three games in 2020 … She current leads the pitching staff with 17 strikeouts and is limiting opponents to a .216 batting average.

UP NEXT:
The Ball State softball team returns to action next weekend at the Jacksonville/UNF Challenge. First up, a Friday doubleheader at Jacksonville with first pitch scheduled for 5 p.m. ET.

FOR MORE INFO:
For the most up-to-date news on Ball State softball, follow the team on Twitter: @BallStateSB, @CoachCBartlett & @BallStateSports / Instagram: ballstatesb / Facebook: BallStateSB.

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Team Stats

Amaia Daniel

Stacy Payton

Haley Dominique

Janae Hogg

Players Mentioned

Becca Clanton

Amaia Daniel

Haley Dominique

Trinity Eckerty

Janae Hogg

Delanie Johnson

Tieghan Morio

Stacy Payton

Alyssa Rothwell

Shelby Westbrook

Players Mentioned

Becca Clanton

Amaia Daniel

Haley Dominique

Trinity Eckerty

Janae Hogg

Delanie Johnson

Tieghan Morio

Stacy Payton

Alyssa Rothwell

Shelby Westbrook