Falcons Flock To Buffalo And Kent State In MAC Play This Weekend

Bowling Green Falcons (18-21-1, 4-6 MAC)
vs.
University at Buffalo (20-17, 4-2 MAC) Live Stats | Live Video | Season Statistics
Kent State University (17-15, 3-3 MAC) Live Stats | Live Audio | Season Statistics

Mid-American Conference Weekend
Date	OPPONENT	TIME
4/18/14	@ Buffalo	1 p.m.
4/18/14	@ Buffalo	3 p.m.
4/19/14	@ Kent State	2 p.m.
4/20/14	@ Kent State	1 p.m.

All-Time Series
OPPONENT	All-TIme Series	Last Time Out
Buffalo	19-8	L 0-2, W 2-1 (April 12, 2013)
Kent State	44-57-1	L 0-1, L 1-5 (April 14, 2013)

BOWLING GREEN -- The Bowling Green State University softball team will continue Mid-American Conference action this weekend, taking on the University at Buffalo and the Kent State University Golden Flashes on the road. The Falcons (18-21-1, 4-6 MAC) will take on the Bulls (20-17, 4-2 MAC) in a twin bill on Friday (April 18) afternoon before taking on the Golden Flashes (17-15, 3-3 MAC) in single affairs on Saturday and Sunday.

The Falcons are coming off a mid-week sweep over Detroit at Meserve FIeld on Wedneesday (April 16) afternoon, improving the Orange and Brown's record to 5-1 on their home grass. Bowling Green are led offensively by its two seniors, Erika Stratton and Katie Yoho. Stratton, who hit a walk-off grand slam to lift the Falcons over Detroit in game one of the doubleheader on Wednesday, will enter the weekend hitting .281 (32-for-114) with a team-leading 24 RBI. Yoho, meanwhile, will enter the weekend leading the team with a .310 batting average. Yoho also leads the Falcons with 39 hits, 64 total bases and a .508 slugging percentage.

In the circle, the Orange and Brown are led by junior Jamie Kertes and sophomore Braiden Dillow. Kertes (10-16), who leads the Falcons with 38 appearances, owns a 2.36 ERA in 157.0 innings of work, while surrendering 167 hits and holdings her opponents to a .265 average. Dillow, the native of Lucasville, Ohio, has made 34 appearances for the Falcons this year. Dillow holds an 8-5 record with a 2.70 ERA in 106.1 innings of work.

Detroit Titans Recap (April 16)

BOWLING GREEN, Ohio – Down but never out, senior Erika Stratton 's walk-off grand slam in the bottom of the seventh inning propelled the Bowling Green State University softball team to a mid-week doubleheader sweep over visiting Detroit at Meserve Field on Wednesday (April 16) afternoon. With Stratton's late-inning heroics, the Falcons (18-21-1) took the first game by a score of 7-4 before defeating the Titans (4-32) 2-0 in the second game.

"We found a way offensively to get the job done in game one," Falcons head coach Shannon Salsburg said. "Erika (Stratton) came up with a huge hit in the last inning. It was great to see her come out strong."

Trailing 4-3 in the home half of the seventh inning, the Falcons needed at least one run to extend the game. However, the Orange and Brown got more than enough when Stratton smashed a fastball over the left field fence for a walk-off grand slam. The Las Vegas, Nev. native had the opportunity to win the game when three first three Falcons reached base to set the scene for the senior co-captain.

With her grand slam in the seventh inning, Stratton added four RBI in the game for a team-leading 24 on the season. The grand slam also marked her sixth home run of the season, which is tied with senior Katie Yoho and freshman Chelsea Raker for the most of the team.

TEAM COMPARISON (as of April 17, 2014)

Bowling Green	VS.	Buffalo
.235	Batting Average	.262
239	Hits	247
36	Doubles	51
3	Triples	8
26	Home Runs	22
111	RBI	135

Bowling Green	VS.	Kent State
.235	Batting Average	.235
239	Hits	194
36	Doubles	36
3	Triples	11
26	Home Runs	25
111	RBI	110

TEAM LEADERS (as of April 17, 2014)

Bowling Green	VS.	Buffalo
Katie Yoho (.310)	Batting Average	Holly Luciano (.321)
Katie Yoho (.508)	Slugging Percentage	Sammi Gallardo (.733)
Chelsea Raker (6)	Doubles	Alexis Curtiss (10)
Multiple (1)	Triples	Holly Luciano (3)
Raker/ Yoho/ Stratton (6)	Home Runs	Sammi Gallardo (11)
Erika Stratton (24)	RBI	Multiple (26)
Emily McClelland (6)	Stolen Bases	Holly Luciano (11)
Katie Yoho (64)	Total Bases	Sammi Gallardo (74)
Haley Schrock (21)	Walks	Heather Ryder (15)

Bowling Green	VS.	Kent State
Katie Yoho (.310)	Batting Average	Ariele Patterson (.316)
Katie Yoho (.508	Slugging Percentage	Maddy Grimm (.739)
Chelsea Raker (6)	Doubles	Kim Kirkpatrick (9)
Multiple (1)	Triples	Dani Ramos (4)
Raker/ Yoho/Stratton (6)	Home Runs	Maddy Grimm (10)
Erika Stratton (24)	RBI	Maddy Grimm (35)
Emily McClelland (6)	Stolen Bases	Kim Kirkpatrick (4)
Katie Yoho (64)	Total Bases	Maddy Grimm (68)
Haley Schrock (21)	Walks	Maddy Grimm (20)

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.

Current MAC Standings (as of April 17, 2014)

	MAC				Overall
Team	Win	Loss	Tie	Pct.	Win	Loss	Tie	Pct.
Ohio	8	2	0	.800	23	17	0	.575
Buffalo	4	2	0	.667	20	17	0	.541
Akron	5	3	0	.625	19	10	0	.655
Kent State	3	3	0	.500	17	15	0	.531
Miami	5	5	0	.500	17	20	0	.459
Bowling Green	4	6	0	.400	18	21	1	.434

	MAC				Overall
Team	Win	Loss	Tie	Pct.	Win	Loss	Tie	Pct.
Ball State	4	2	0	.667	24	15	0	.622
Central Michigan	5	3	0	.625	26	13	0	.684
Northern Illinois	5	5	0	.500	17	20	0	.459
Toledo	5	7	0	.417	14	27	0	.341
Western Michigan	4	6	0	.400	13	26	0	.333
Eastern Michigan	0	8	0	.000	9	27	0	.257

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)

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