Sunday, February 23
Charlotte, NC
10 a.m.
Ball State University
7-2
12
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Albany
0-5
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4
5
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H
E
Ball State
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12
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Albany
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Photo by: Owen Main - Owen Main Photography
Softball Closes Weekend With 12-1 (5) Win Over Albany
February 23, 2025 | Softball
CHARLOTTE - - Powered by four home runs, including a grand slam from redshirt senior catcher McKayla Timmons, the Ball State softball team closed play in the Charlotte Invitational with a 12-1 (5) victory over Albany Sunday morning at Sue M. Daughtridge Field.
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While the Grate Danes (0-5) scored the game's first run in the bottom of the second, the Cardinals (7-2) answered with 12 straight over the next three innings to pull off their fourth run-rule victory in the last six games.
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Ball State scored its first three runs in the top of the third, with the first coming on an error and the final two on an RBI single up the middle from junior pitcher Ella Whitney.
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BSU added two more runs in the top of the fourth, on back-to-back home runs from redshirt junior center fielder Hayley Urban and senior left fielder Kara Gunter, before exploding for seven runs in the fifth. The seven-run fifth was highlighted by Timmons grand slam followed by a solo shot from Whitney.
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Whitney, who finished the day 2-for-4 from the plate with three RBI and a run scored, also improved to 4-0 this season in the circle by limiting Albany to one run and three hits over her 5.0 innings of work. She also struck out a pair of batters and owns a team-best 2.36 ERA over 26.2 innings of work this season.
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NOTES
- Timmons has now reached base safely in all nine games this season, raising her active streak to 35 games.
- With her second career grand slam in the top of the fifth, Timmons is now alone in second on Ball State's career home runs list with 43.
- With both Gunter and Whitney blasting their first home runs as Cardinals, Ball State has had seven different players blast at least one home run this season.
- Urban added her third home run of the season to open the fourth inning Sunday, giving her three home runs in her last six at bats. She had no home runs over the first 57 at bats of her collegiate career.
- With just three errors over its first nine games, Ball State remains the top fielding team in the league with a .988 fielding percentage
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SCORING SUMMERY: Ball State 12 - Albany 1 (5)
B2 - Albany struck first on an RBI single from Sara Anderson (1-0)
T3 - Gunter scored Ball State's first run on an error, tying the score (1-1)
T3 - Whitney drove in her first two runs of the game with a two-run single up the middle (1-3)
T4 - Urban opened the inning with her third home run in the last two games (1-4)
T4 - Gunter followed with her first career Ball State home run (1-5)
T5 - Gunter drove in her second run of the game when she was hit by a pitch with bases loaded to open the scoring in the seven-run fifth (1-6)
T5 - Sophomore shortstop Maia Pietrzak followed with an RBI single to extend BSU's lead to six (1-7)
T5 - Timmons smashed her second home run of the season, her second career grand slam, to up the advantage to 10 runs (1-11)
T5 - Whitney capped the scoring with her first home run for the Cardinals (1-12)
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UP NEXT
The Ball State softball team returns to action next Friday when it travels to Middle Tennessee for the MTSU Invitational. BSU will battle the host Blue Raiders (Noon) and Illinois State (5 p.m.) one the opening day of the three-day tournament.
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While the Grate Danes (0-5) scored the game's first run in the bottom of the second, the Cardinals (7-2) answered with 12 straight over the next three innings to pull off their fourth run-rule victory in the last six games.
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Ball State scored its first three runs in the top of the third, with the first coming on an error and the final two on an RBI single up the middle from junior pitcher Ella Whitney.
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BSU added two more runs in the top of the fourth, on back-to-back home runs from redshirt junior center fielder Hayley Urban and senior left fielder Kara Gunter, before exploding for seven runs in the fifth. The seven-run fifth was highlighted by Timmons grand slam followed by a solo shot from Whitney.
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Whitney, who finished the day 2-for-4 from the plate with three RBI and a run scored, also improved to 4-0 this season in the circle by limiting Albany to one run and three hits over her 5.0 innings of work. She also struck out a pair of batters and owns a team-best 2.36 ERA over 26.2 innings of work this season.
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NOTES
- Timmons has now reached base safely in all nine games this season, raising her active streak to 35 games.
- With her second career grand slam in the top of the fifth, Timmons is now alone in second on Ball State's career home runs list with 43.
- With both Gunter and Whitney blasting their first home runs as Cardinals, Ball State has had seven different players blast at least one home run this season.
- Urban added her third home run of the season to open the fourth inning Sunday, giving her three home runs in her last six at bats. She had no home runs over the first 57 at bats of her collegiate career.
- With just three errors over its first nine games, Ball State remains the top fielding team in the league with a .988 fielding percentage
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SCORING SUMMERY: Ball State 12 - Albany 1 (5)
B2 - Albany struck first on an RBI single from Sara Anderson (1-0)
T3 - Gunter scored Ball State's first run on an error, tying the score (1-1)
T3 - Whitney drove in her first two runs of the game with a two-run single up the middle (1-3)
T4 - Urban opened the inning with her third home run in the last two games (1-4)
T4 - Gunter followed with her first career Ball State home run (1-5)
T5 - Gunter drove in her second run of the game when she was hit by a pitch with bases loaded to open the scoring in the seven-run fifth (1-6)
T5 - Sophomore shortstop Maia Pietrzak followed with an RBI single to extend BSU's lead to six (1-7)
T5 - Timmons smashed her second home run of the season, her second career grand slam, to up the advantage to 10 runs (1-11)
T5 - Whitney capped the scoring with her first home run for the Cardinals (1-12)
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UP NEXT
The Ball State softball team returns to action next Friday when it travels to Middle Tennessee for the MTSU Invitational. BSU will battle the host Blue Raiders (Noon) and Illinois State (5 p.m.) one the opening day of the three-day tournament.
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Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Whitney, Ella (4-0)
L: Hailey Errichiello (0-2)
Batting:
HR: Gunter, Kara 1 ; Timmons, McKayla 1 ; Whitney, Ella 1 ; Urban, Hayley 1
RBI: Gunter, Kara 2 ; Pietrzak, Maia 1 ; Timmons, McKayla 4 ; Whitney, Ella 3 ; Urban, Hayley 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Gunter, Kara 3 ; Pietrzak, Maia 2 ; Timmons, McKayla 2 ; Whitney, Ella 1 ; Peitersen, Veronica 1 ; Schoch, Sophie 1 ; Urban, Hayley 2
SB: Pietrzak, Maia 1 ; Timmons, McKayla 2 ; Mulholland, McKenna 1
HBP: Gunter, Kara 1
Batting:
RBI: Sara Anderson 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Deanna Grahek 1
Game Leaders
Hitting
AB
3
R
3
H
2
RBI
2
AB
4
R
2
H
2
RBI
1
AB
4
R
1
H
2
RBI
3
AB
3
R
2
H
2
RBI
1
Players Mentioned
OF
/ Softball
INF
/ Softball
UT
/ Softball
UT
/ SoftballINF / RHP
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