Softball Shuts Out Miami in Saturday Sweep

MUNCIE, Ind. - - Freshman Breanna Severino and junior Ella Whitney threw a combined 14 innings of shutout softball to lead the Ball State softball team to 3-0 and 5-0 victories over Mid-American Conference leader Miami Saturday afternoon.

Severino threw the opener for the Cardinals (26-11; 11-5 MAC), scattering seven hits over her seven innings of work while allowing just one walk. She also struck out four batters on her way to her second career collegiate complete game shutout.

On the offensive front, all three of Ball State's runs came in the fourth inning which started with redshirt junior right fielder Ashlee Lovett being hit by a pitch. Two batters later, sophomore third baseman Mandy Lauth was also hit by a pitch, giving the Cardinals a pair of base runners.

Then, with two outs, the Cardinals took advantage of the hit batters with sophomore shortstop Maia Pietrzak smashing a two-run double to right center. The rally continued in the next at bat, when redshirt senior catcher McKayla Timmons blasted an RBI double of her own to the wall in center field.

In the nightcap, it was Whitney's turn to pick up her second complete game shutout of the season as she limited the RedHawks (25-18; 14-3 MAC) to two hits over one of her most dominating efforts of the season. She struck out six batters along the way, five of which she caught looking.

On the offensive front, it was also Whitney who would drive in what proved to be the game-winning run as she opened the bottom of the second with her eighth home run of the season.

The Cardinals extended its lead to 3-0 in the bottom of the third, capitalizing on a lead off walk by Pietrzak thanks to an RBI double form senior left fielder Kara Gunter. Two batters later, redshirt freshman pinch run Payton Fox came around to score on a single down the left field line from redshirt junior second baseman McKenna Mulholland.

Lovett capped the scoring in the bottom of the fifth, driving in both Timmons and Gunter with a one-out double down the left field line. Timmons walked to open the inning, while Gunter picked up her 100th collegiate hit with a double to right center to put the pair in scoring position.

NOTES
- Along with the crucial HBPs in the third inning of the opener, Ball State's batters were hit by five pitches on the day to raise its program record and NCAA-leading total to 68 on the year.

- Saturday's pitch effort marks the first time Ball State has earned back-to-back shutout victories since April 20, 2022, when the Cardinals earned a pair of 5-0 victories over Western Michigan … Of note, the second game of that sweep was the first recorded perfect game in program history thrown by then-freshman Angelina Russo.

- Ball State turned in another errorless game in Saturday's opener, raising its season total to 18 games without an error.

- Redshirt junior center fielder Hayley Urban came up big on defense in the third inning of the opener when Miami put its first two batters on base … She started with a spectacular backpedaling catch up against the wall to rob a two-run double … The second out was another backpedaling catch near the warning track, while the final out was a routine fly right to her.

UP NEXT:
The Ball State softball team returns to action Tuesday, when it travels to Western Michigan for a1 p.m. doubleheader.

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Team Stats

Maia Pietrzak

McKayla Timmons

Kara Gunter

Ashlee Lovett

Players Mentioned

Payton Fox

Kara Gunter

Mandy Lauth

Ashlee Lovett

McKenna Mulholland

Maia Pietrzak

Breanna Severino

McKayla Timmons

Hayley Urban

Ella Whitney