Bowling Green State University Athletics
Falcons Will Head To NIU For MAC Opening Weekend
March 26, 2014 | Softball
| Tentative Softball Schedule | ||
| Date | OPPONENT | TIME |
| 3/28/14 | Northern Illinois | 4 p.m. |
| 3/29/14 | Northern Illinois | 2 p.m. |
| 3/30/14 | Western Michigan | 10 a.m. |
| 3/30/14 | Western Michigan | 12 p.m. |
| All-Time Series | ||
| OPPONENT | All-TIme Series | Last Time Out |
| Northern Illinois | 21-21 | NMU, 5-4 (May 5, 2013) |
| Western Michigan | 32-46 | WMU, 4-3 (May 3, 2013) |
Dekalb, Ill. -- The Bowling Green State University softball team will open their 2014 Mid-America Conference campaign at Northern Illinois University over the weekend (March 28-30), taking on the Huskies and the Western Michigan University Broncos over a three-day span. Originally scheduled to play at Meserve Field, unplayable conditions forced the Orange and Brown to force their attention towards NIU for opening MAC play. The Falcons (9-14-1) are scheduled to take on the Huskies Friday at 4 p.m. in a single game before playing them on Saturday at 2 p.m. BGSU will then conclude their weekend with a doubleheader against WMU on Sunday, which is scheduled to begin at 10 a.m. The Orange and Brown will enter MAC play coming off a 3-1 week at the 11th Annual UMBC Spring Classic, where Bowling Green swept Mount St. Mary's on Friday afternoon before defeating St. Peters, 9-1, to earn a split on Saturday (March 22) afternoon.
The Orange and Brown are led offensively by senior Katie Yoho. She leads the team with a .324 batting average (24-for-74), with four doubles, one triple three homers and 14 RBI in 24 games. Her 24 hits leads the team and also has a team-leading 39 total bases. The Falcons' second senior, Erika Stratton, has also made her presence felt at the plate, especially last weekend. The Las Vegas, Nev. native, who accumulated six hits, one double, two homers and seven RBI for a team-leading .462 batting average in Baltimore at the UMBC Spring Classic, will enter the week with a .303 overall batting average in 24 games this season. The senior holds a team-leading 18 RBI, thanks to a career-high four RBI outburst against Mount St. Mary's on Friday afternoon.
The Falcons have also seen strong pitching performances from junior Jamie Kertes and sophomore Braiden Dillow in the circle. Kertes (5-10), who will enter the week with a 2.30 ERA in 24 appearances, posted an ERA of 1.17 in 18.0 innings of work last week in Baltimore. Meanwhile, Dillow (4-4) will enter the week with a 3.20 ERA in 20 appearances on the year, accumulating 61.1 innings of work in the circle for the Orange and Brown.
11th Annual UMBC Spring Classic (March 21-22)
Day One: EMMITSBURG, Md. – The Bowling Green State University softball team earned a sweep over Mount Saint Mary's College on Friday (March 21) afternoon, defeating the Mount by scores of 1-0 and 9-5 in the twinbill at the Our Lady of the Meadows Field.
The Falcons (8-13-1) responded by a strong pitching effort in the circle by junior Jamie Kertes on the day by earning their first two-game sweep on the season. The Orange and Brown were paced offensively by Erika Stratton (4-for-7, five RBI), freshman Amanda Durham (4-for-7, two RBI) and Madison Schrock (2-for-5, two RBI). In all, eight different players totaled at least one hit in the day, with both Stratton and Durham leading the way with four apiece.
Day Two: BALTIMORE, Md. – The Bowling Green State University softball team exploded for nine runs on eight hits to defeat St. Peters on Saturday (March 22) afternoon, taking the second game of the twinbill by a score of 9-1. Earlier in the day, the Falcons (9-14-1) lost to Sacred Heart by a score of 3-1.
With the split on the day, the Orange and Brown finished the 11th Annual UMBC Spring Classic with a 3-1 mark. The Falcons outscored its opponents by a 20-9 margin, including going 3-0 when scoring the first run of the game. Bowling Green totaled a team batting average of .278 in four games, accumulating 30 hits, seven doubles, four homers and 17 RBI in the two-day span.
TEAM COMPARISON
| Bowling Green | VS. | Northern Illinois |
| .212 | Batting Average | .296 |
| 125 | Hits | 177 |
| 18 | Doubles | 32 |
| 1 | Triples | 3 |
| 13 | Home Runs | 10 |
| 57 | RBI | 89 |
| Bowling Green | VS. | Western Michigan |
| .212 | Batting Average | .253 |
| 125 | Hits | 162 |
| 18 | Doubles | 26 |
| 1 | Triples | 0 |
| 13 | Home Runs | 9 |
| 57 | RBI | 70 |
| Bowling Green | VS. | Northern Illinois |
| 2.64 | Team ERA | 4.32 |
| 9-14 | W-L | 10-13 |
| .262 | Avg. Against | .222 |
| 2/1 | SHO | 2/1 |
| 156.2 | IP | 144.1 |
| 160 | Hits Allowed | 183 |
| Bowling Green | VS. | Western Michigan |
| 2.64 | Team ERA | 4.66 |
| 9-14 | W-L | 7-18 |
| .262 | Avg. Against | .330 |
| 2/1 | SHO | 1/0 |
| 156.2 | IP | 154.2 |
| 160 | Hits Allowed | 223 |
TEAM LEADERS
| Bowling Green | VS. | Northern Illinois |
| Katie Yoho (.324) | Batting Average | Jessica Sturm (.400) |
| Erika Stratton (.576) | Slugging Percentage | Jessica Sturm (.571) |
| Multiple (4) | Doubles | Kayti Grable (6) |
| Katie Yoho (1) | Triples | Multiple (1) |
| Erika Stratton (5) | Home Runs | Kayti Grable (3) |
| Erika Stratton (18) | RBI | Shelby Miller (15) |
| Chelsea Raker (3-3) | Stolen Bases | Ashley Kopp (3-3) |
| Katie Yoho (39) | Total Bases | Kayti Grable (38) |
| Haley Schrock (13) | Walks | Emily Naegele (9) |
| Bowling Green | VS. | Western Michigan |
| Katie Yoho (.324) | Batting Average | Melissa Palmer (.372) |
| Erika Stratton (.576) | Slugging Percentage | Sabrina Gamboa (.480) |
| Multiple (4) | Doubles | Multiple (7) |
| Katie Yoho (1) | Triples | None |
| Erika Stratton (5) | Home Runs | Sabrina Gamboa (3) |
| Erika Stratton (18) | RBI | Sabrina Gamboa (14) |
| Chelsea Raker (3-3) | Stolen Bases | Melissa Palmer (3-3) |
| Katie Yoho (39) | Total Bases | Sabrina Gamboa (36) |
| Haley Schrock (13) | Walks | Sabrina Gamboa (7) |
FOLLOW THE FALCONS
Links to live stats can be found at BGSUFalcons.com for each contest throughout the season. Fans can follow the BGSU softball team through Twitter on the official team account @BGSUSoftball and through the official account of the Athletics Department @BGAthletics.
PRESEASON POLL
BGSU was picked to finish fourth in the MAC Preseason Poll, as voted on by the league's coaches. The Falcons finished fourth in the East Division during the regular season a year ago. Kent State was tabbed to be the favorite in the MAC East Division in 2014, receiving seven first-place votes. Ohio and Miami each received two first place votes and was picked second and third in the East, respectively. After Bowling Green, Akron was selected fifth and, despite receiving a first-place vote; Buffalo was selected to finish last.
MAC East Preseason Poll
1. Kent State (7 First Place Votes)
2. Ohio (2)
3. Miami (2)
4. Bowling Green
5. Akron
6. Buffalo (1)
MAC West Preseason Poll
1. Central Michigan (6)
2. Ball State (6)
3. Northern Illinois
4. Western Michigan
5. Eastern Michigan
6. Toledo
Predicted 2014 MAC Tournament Champions
Central Michigan (4 Votes)
Ball State, Kent State, Ohio (2)
Buffalo, Northern Illinois (1)
