Wednesday, April 16
Kalamazoo, MI
1 p.m.
Ball State University
27-11, 12-5
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Western Michigan
11-29, 5-10
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Ball State
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Western Michigan
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Softball Sweeps Western Michigan in Wednesday #MACtion
April 16, 2025 | Softball
KALAMAZOO, Mich. – The Ball State Softball team once again completed a doubleheader sweep in Mid-American Conference action Wednesday, taking down Western Michigan by scores of 4-3 and 14-4 at Ebert Field.
The Cardinals (28-11; 13-5 MAC) got off to a hot start in the first game, as sophomore shortstop Maia Pietrzak opened with a lead-off home run. It was her seventh to go beyond the fence this the season, giving BSU an early advantage over the Broncos (11-30; 5-11 MAC).
Later in the third, with two outs with senior right fielder Maddie Weaver and redshirt senior catcher McKayla Timmons on base, senior left fielder Kara Gunter hit a single to right field for two RBIs.
Pietrzak's lead-off homer was not the only contribution she made to the game. In the fifth, after redshirt freshman Payton Fox entered to pinch run following a lead-off double by redshirt-junior center fielder Hayley Urban, Pietrzak soared a sacrifice fly into right field which allowed Fox to cross home plate and brought the score to 4-1.
It proved to be a crucial play in the game, as it drove in what proved to be the game-winning run.
On the defensive side, the bottom of the fifth saw Timmons help limit the Broncos to one run in the frame by making an incredibly close tag at home on a squeeze play. That also proved to be a key point in the game, as WMU added another run in the bottom of the sixth to pull within one.
Junior pitcher Ella Whitney went the distance in the circle, earning her 17th win of the season as she only allowed six hits and three runs in 7.0 innings pitched.
Roughly 30 minutes later, the Cardinals showed why it is one of the nation's top scoring teams by putting on an offensive clinic with 14 more runs.
Both teams came out scoring early in game two, with McKenna Mulholland taking advantage of loaded bases, hitting her first of three doubles in the game to right center field for two runs. Mulholland's two RBIs was immediately followed by a sacrifice fly from junior right fielder Ashlee Lovett, allowing Gunter to put Ball State up three.
While Western Michigan responded with two runs of their own in the bottom of the first, Timmons' RBI double in the second increased the BSU lead to 4-2. Timmons would earn her 48th RBI of the season, tying first in the conference.
After a scoreless third, the Cardinals would come up with a huge five-run inning in the fourth, with help from RBIs from Urban, Pietrzak, Gunter, Mulholland and Lovett. Mulholland and Lovett's RBIs were from the result of being a hit by pitch and a walk, respectively.
Senior Kaitlyn Gibson added to the run total with an RBI single in the sixth to bring the score to 10-3.
Whitney then sealed the deal by taking a 3-2 pitch over the left field wall in the top of the seventh for her first collegiate grand slam. It was her eighth home run of the season and helped her move into third in the MAC with 44 RBIs.
Freshman pitcher Breanna Severino took over the circle in game two, going the distance as well and being awarded her seventh win of the year. Severino held Western Michigan to just nine hits and four runs over her 7.0 innings of work, while adding three strikeouts.
NOTES:
- Ball State tallied 11 total doubles in Wednesday's doubleheader, led by four from Mulholland and three from Timmons ... In fact, Cardinals eight doubles in the nightcap were the most in a game for the squad this season and helped up BSU's season total to 68.
- Ball State went 4-for-4 in stolen base attempts on the day, raising its season mark to 81-for-91 ... The 81 stolen bases are now the ninth-most in a season in program history and are 29 more than any other team in the MAC this season.
- With its 14-run output in the nightcap, Ball State has now scored 10-or-more runs in 13 games this season and raised its season run total to 301 ... It is just the seventh time in program history the Cardinals have scored 300-or-more runs in a season, and 67 shy of the program record 368 set by the 2012 squad.Â
UP NEXT:
The Cardinals will travel to Bloomington for action against Indiana April 23 at 6 p.m.
Â
The Cardinals (28-11; 13-5 MAC) got off to a hot start in the first game, as sophomore shortstop Maia Pietrzak opened with a lead-off home run. It was her seventh to go beyond the fence this the season, giving BSU an early advantage over the Broncos (11-30; 5-11 MAC).
Later in the third, with two outs with senior right fielder Maddie Weaver and redshirt senior catcher McKayla Timmons on base, senior left fielder Kara Gunter hit a single to right field for two RBIs.
Pietrzak's lead-off homer was not the only contribution she made to the game. In the fifth, after redshirt freshman Payton Fox entered to pinch run following a lead-off double by redshirt-junior center fielder Hayley Urban, Pietrzak soared a sacrifice fly into right field which allowed Fox to cross home plate and brought the score to 4-1.
It proved to be a crucial play in the game, as it drove in what proved to be the game-winning run.
On the defensive side, the bottom of the fifth saw Timmons help limit the Broncos to one run in the frame by making an incredibly close tag at home on a squeeze play. That also proved to be a key point in the game, as WMU added another run in the bottom of the sixth to pull within one.
Junior pitcher Ella Whitney went the distance in the circle, earning her 17th win of the season as she only allowed six hits and three runs in 7.0 innings pitched.
Roughly 30 minutes later, the Cardinals showed why it is one of the nation's top scoring teams by putting on an offensive clinic with 14 more runs.
Both teams came out scoring early in game two, with McKenna Mulholland taking advantage of loaded bases, hitting her first of three doubles in the game to right center field for two runs. Mulholland's two RBIs was immediately followed by a sacrifice fly from junior right fielder Ashlee Lovett, allowing Gunter to put Ball State up three.
While Western Michigan responded with two runs of their own in the bottom of the first, Timmons' RBI double in the second increased the BSU lead to 4-2. Timmons would earn her 48th RBI of the season, tying first in the conference.
After a scoreless third, the Cardinals would come up with a huge five-run inning in the fourth, with help from RBIs from Urban, Pietrzak, Gunter, Mulholland and Lovett. Mulholland and Lovett's RBIs were from the result of being a hit by pitch and a walk, respectively.
Senior Kaitlyn Gibson added to the run total with an RBI single in the sixth to bring the score to 10-3.
Whitney then sealed the deal by taking a 3-2 pitch over the left field wall in the top of the seventh for her first collegiate grand slam. It was her eighth home run of the season and helped her move into third in the MAC with 44 RBIs.
Freshman pitcher Breanna Severino took over the circle in game two, going the distance as well and being awarded her seventh win of the year. Severino held Western Michigan to just nine hits and four runs over her 7.0 innings of work, while adding three strikeouts.
NOTES:
- Ball State tallied 11 total doubles in Wednesday's doubleheader, led by four from Mulholland and three from Timmons ... In fact, Cardinals eight doubles in the nightcap were the most in a game for the squad this season and helped up BSU's season total to 68.
- Ball State went 4-for-4 in stolen base attempts on the day, raising its season mark to 81-for-91 ... The 81 stolen bases are now the ninth-most in a season in program history and are 29 more than any other team in the MAC this season.
- With its 14-run output in the nightcap, Ball State has now scored 10-or-more runs in 13 games this season and raised its season run total to 301 ... It is just the seventh time in program history the Cardinals have scored 300-or-more runs in a season, and 67 shy of the program record 368 set by the 2012 squad.Â
UP NEXT:
The Cardinals will travel to Bloomington for action against Indiana April 23 at 6 p.m.
Â
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Whitney, Ella (17-4)
L: Kaylee Salyer (2-9)
Batting:
2B: Timmons, McKayla 1 ; Mulholland, McKenna 1 ; Urban, Hayley 1
HR: Pietrzak, Maia 1
RBI: Pietrzak, Maia 2 ; Gunter, Kara 2
SH: Urban, Hayley 1
SF: Pietrzak, Maia 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Pietrzak, Maia 1 ; Timmons, McKayla 1 ; Weaver, Maddie 1 ; Fox, Payton 1
SB: Timmons, McKayla 1 ; Mulholland, McKenna 1 ; Fox, Payton 1
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Batting:
2B: Riley Dittmar 1 ; Tristen Head 1 ; Payton Kelly 1
RBI: Tristen Head 1 ; Micaela Booth 1 ; Jadeyn Merrill 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Riley Dittmar 1 ; Payton Kelly 1 ; Taylor Wolfe 1
HBP: Jadeyn Merrill 1
Game Leaders
Hitting
AB
3
R
1
H
2
RBI
0
AB
3
R
0
H
2
RBI
0
AB
3
R
1
H
1
RBI
2
AB
4
R
0
H
1
RBI
2
Players Mentioned
Util.
/ Softball
INF
/ SoftballOF
/ Softball
OF
/ Softball
UT
/ Softball
INF
/ Softball
RHP
/ Softball
UT
/ Softball
UT
/ Softball
C/UT
/ Softball
INF / RHP
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