Sunday, April 18
Akron, OH
11 a.m.
Ball State University
21-10, 15-0
6
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Akron
3-27, 2-14
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2
3
4
5
6
7
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H
E
Ball State
0
4
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1
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6
11
2
Akron
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2
0
Softball Completes Series Sweep with Sunday Win at Akron
April 18, 2021 | Softball
AKRON, Ohio - - Dominant pitching, and another big inning, helped the Ball State softball team complete its fourth Mid-American Conference series sweep of the season with a 6-0 victory over Akron Sunday afternoon at Lee R. Jackson Softball Field.
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It was the Cardinals' (21-10; 15-0 MAC) 15th straight victory in MAC play, extending the best start to conference play in program history.
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The series sweep over the Zips (3-27; 2-14 MAC) sets up a very important MAC doubleheader Tuesday at Miami, as it will be a battle of the league's two undefeated juggernauts. The Cardinals enter the contest at 15-0 in MAC play, while the RedHawks improved to 16-0 after completing a series sweep of Buffalo this afternoon.
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It will be the first of two midweek doubleheaders for the two clubs, as Miami will make the return trip to Muncie on Wednesday, April 28. Right now, it looks like the winner of the series will have the upper hand at claiming the league's regular season title and berth in the NCAA Tournament as no other MAC program has fewer than five league losses this season.
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In Sunday's win at Akron, sophomore Deborah Jones was perfect in the circle through the first three innings, striking out five of the nine batters she faced. Senior Darcie Huber took over in the bottom of the fourth and looked just as solid, striking out five on her way to picking up her second victory of the series. Junior Tieghan Morio closed the game, throwing the final inning.
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Combined, Ball State's pitchers struck out a season-high 10 batters while allowing just two hits.
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On offense, the Cardinals jumped out to an early 1-0 lead thanks to a one-out solo shot from senior center fielder Kennedy Wynn in the top of the second. Ball State would not stop there, however, scoring three more runs in the inning to give its pitchers all the run support they would need.
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Freshman shortstop Kayla Lissy followed the home run with her MAC-leading sixth triple of the season, and came home moments later on a single up the middle by sophomore third baseman Haley Wynn. After H. Wynn stole second and moved to third on a groundout, senior right fielder Haley Dominique drew a walk to put runners at first and third.
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Senior catcher Stacy Payton took advantage, doubling down the left field line to push Ball State's lead to 3-0. A wild pitch followed, allowing Dominique to score from third and make the score 4-0.
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Ball State extended the lead to 5-0 courtesy of a sacrifice fly from Janae Hogg in the top of the sixth inning. The final run came courtesy of redshirt sophomore Jazmyne Armendariz's first career home run with two outs in the top of the seventh.
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Overall, the Cardinals pounded out 11 hits in the game, led by two each from junior second baseman Amaia Daniel, Dominique and Payton. Five different players logged RBIs for Ball State, while six different players scored a run.
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It was the Cardinals' (21-10; 15-0 MAC) 15th straight victory in MAC play, extending the best start to conference play in program history.
Â
The series sweep over the Zips (3-27; 2-14 MAC) sets up a very important MAC doubleheader Tuesday at Miami, as it will be a battle of the league's two undefeated juggernauts. The Cardinals enter the contest at 15-0 in MAC play, while the RedHawks improved to 16-0 after completing a series sweep of Buffalo this afternoon.
Â
It will be the first of two midweek doubleheaders for the two clubs, as Miami will make the return trip to Muncie on Wednesday, April 28. Right now, it looks like the winner of the series will have the upper hand at claiming the league's regular season title and berth in the NCAA Tournament as no other MAC program has fewer than five league losses this season.
Â
In Sunday's win at Akron, sophomore Deborah Jones was perfect in the circle through the first three innings, striking out five of the nine batters she faced. Senior Darcie Huber took over in the bottom of the fourth and looked just as solid, striking out five on her way to picking up her second victory of the series. Junior Tieghan Morio closed the game, throwing the final inning.
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Combined, Ball State's pitchers struck out a season-high 10 batters while allowing just two hits.
Â
On offense, the Cardinals jumped out to an early 1-0 lead thanks to a one-out solo shot from senior center fielder Kennedy Wynn in the top of the second. Ball State would not stop there, however, scoring three more runs in the inning to give its pitchers all the run support they would need.
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Freshman shortstop Kayla Lissy followed the home run with her MAC-leading sixth triple of the season, and came home moments later on a single up the middle by sophomore third baseman Haley Wynn. After H. Wynn stole second and moved to third on a groundout, senior right fielder Haley Dominique drew a walk to put runners at first and third.
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Senior catcher Stacy Payton took advantage, doubling down the left field line to push Ball State's lead to 3-0. A wild pitch followed, allowing Dominique to score from third and make the score 4-0.
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Ball State extended the lead to 5-0 courtesy of a sacrifice fly from Janae Hogg in the top of the sixth inning. The final run came courtesy of redshirt sophomore Jazmyne Armendariz's first career home run with two outs in the top of the seventh.
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Overall, the Cardinals pounded out 11 hits in the game, led by two each from junior second baseman Amaia Daniel, Dominique and Payton. Five different players logged RBIs for Ball State, while six different players scored a run.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Huber, Darcie (4-3)
L: OTANI, Olivia (1-5)
Batting:
2B: Payton, Stacy 1 ; Johnson, Delanie 1
3B: Lissy, Kayla 1
HR: Wynn, Kennedy 1 ; Armendariz, Jazmyne 1
RBI: Wynn, Haley 1 ; Payton, Stacy 1 ; Hogg, Janae 1 ; Wynn, Kennedy 1 ; Armendariz, Jazmyne 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Wynn, Haley 1 ; Daniel, Amaia 1 ; Dominique, Haley 1 ; Wynn, Kennedy 1 ; Lissy, Kayla 1 ; Armendariz, Jazmyne 1
SB: Wynn, Haley 1 ; Dukeman, Hannah 1
HBP: Payton, Stacy 1
Base Running:
SB: McCHESNEY, Molly 1
CS: SONS, Maggie 1
Game Leaders
Hitting
AB
4
R
1
H
2
RBI
0
AB
3
R
1
H
2
RBI
0
AB
3
R
0
H
2
RBI
1
AB
4
R
1
H
1
RBI
1
Players Mentioned
C/Uti
/ SoftballUti
/ SoftballOF
/ Softball
INF
/ Softball
RHP
/ Softball
RHP
/ Softball
INF
/ Softball
RHP
/ SoftballC/INF
/ SoftballINF/OF
/ Softball
OF
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