Flashes Win Saturday's Opener Before Second Game is Suspended

Saturday, April 30

Bowling Green, OH

12:00 PM

Bowling Green State University

18-32, 6-13

Kent State

31-18, 13-6

Kent State

Bowling Green

Kayla Gregory v KSU - April 30 2016 - Larry Clapper photo

Kayla Gregory was 2-for-2 at the plate in Saturday's opener. The second game was suspended.

Photo by: Larry Clapper

April 30, 2016 | Softball

Box Score

Teams will look to resume play on Sunday at Meserve Field

By: BOWLING GREEN, Ohio (BGSU Athletic Communications)

Kent State University's Ronnie Ladines threw a complete-game shutout for the second-straight day, helping the Golden Flashes to an 8-0 victory over the Bowling Green State University softball team Saturday afternoon (April 30). The Mid-American Conference game was held at Meserve Field.

The second game of the teams' scheduled doubleheader was suspended with the score tied at 1-1 in the middle of the fourth inning. The Falcons and Flashes will look to resume play on Sunday (May 1), at 1:00 p.m.

GAME ONE STATISTICS: HTML | PDF
GAME TWO STATISTICS: PDF
PHOTO GALLERY: Christine Nelson, BGSU Mkt & Comm

Sophomore Kayla Gregory was 2-for-2 at the plate to lead the Falcons in the opener.

Kent State pushed a pair of runs across the plate in the second inning, then a BG error opened the door for Maddy Grimm, who hit a two-out, three-run homer to make it a 5-0 KSU lead. The Flashes added a run in the third and two more in the fourth.

In the second game, the visitors scored in the third inning, before BGSU knotted the score in the bottom of the frame.

BGSU game-one starter Briana Combs was called for several illegal pitches in the first inning, but got out of that inning without allowing a run. One of those illegal pitches came when Grimm hit a fielder's choice grounder that saw the Falcons force a runner at second base. Instead of the Falcons having two outs, Grimm returned to the plate and wound up drawing a walk. But, Combs got Ladines to pop up to shortstop Katee Hinkle, and Shelbi Tilton hit a grounder to third baseman Haley Schrock, who stepped on the bag to retire the lead runner.

BG put two runners on base in the first inning with two outs, as redshirt sophomore Chelsea Raker singled through the left side, and senior Marisa Shook walked on four pitches. Ladines uncorked a wild pitch that moved both Falcon baserunners into scoring position, but she got senior Braiden Dillow to hit a chopper back toward the circle. Ladines leaped to grab the ball and was able to throw out Dillow to retire the side.

In the second inning, the Golden Flashes scored a pair of runs with the aid of several bloopers and a BG miscue, before Grimm's blast. Nicki Cregan reached base with a one-out blooper to shallow left, and after an illegal pitch sent her to second, Kiley Harrison's blooper landed behind second base. Gregory kept the ball from leaving the infield, but had no play as KSU had runners at the corners.

Michele Duffy's single through the left side of the Falcon infield scored Cregan, and Arika Roush reached on an error, as a throw to second was high. The bases were loaded with one out, and Harrison scored on a grounder by Emily Dobbin, as BG got an out at third base. But, with two down and two on, Grimm hit her 16th homer of the year, giving the Flashes a five-run lead.

Gregory led off the BG half of the second with a flare that was out of the reach of shortstop Grimm for a single, and she took second on a wild pitch. With one out, senior Marina Cobbs reached base when Grimm bobbled her grounder, and the runners advanced to second and third, respectively, on Hinkle's grounder. But, Ladines got an inning-ending strikeout to end the threat.

The visitors added a run in the third inning on a walk, a sacrifice bunt and a single by Brooke Dodson. Pinch-runner Sydney Anderson came around to score when Dodson's base hit to the outfield was misplayed.

In the fourth, KSU scored two more times, as Grimm led off with a walk and took second on a sac bunt. Tilton reached on an error, and Grimm tagged and advanced to third base after Shook made a nice running catch of Bailey Brownfield's liner toward the gap in left-center. But, with two outs, Cregan's grounder was just out of reach of a diving Hinkle, scoring a run. Then, Dodson lined a ball down the left-field line, and it went all the way to the fence for a run-scoring double.

Gregory led off the home half of the fourth with a double that hit high off the fence in left, and she took second on Ladines' third wild pitch of the game. But, the KSU pitcher got back-to-back groundouts to end the inning and keep BG off the scoreboard.

Holliday had a bloop single in the fifth, and advanced as far as second, but Ladines was able to preserve the shutout and give her team the run-rule victory.

Grimm was 2-for-2 with two walks, two runs scored and three RBI for the visitors, while Cregan and Dodson each were 2-for-2 as well. KSU had 11 hits in the win.

In the circle, Ladines picked up the win to improve to 18-7. She allowed four hits, walking one Falcon and striking out five. Combs took the loss for BG, allowing only three earned runs, and freshman Kiley Sosby got the final four KSU outs, giving up one hit and walking one batter.

In the second game, with a light rain beginning to fall, Dillow got the start, and struck out leadoff hitter Roush on three pitches. She also whiffed Dobbin before Grimm's liner was caught by Cobbs in right field to retire the side in order.

KSU starter Janel Hayes walked Holliday, and junior Haley Schrock bunted the senior centerfielder to second base. Holliday moved to third on a groundout, and Shook walked to put runners at first and third, but Hayes got a grounder to second to retire the side.

Dillow retired the first two hitters of the second inning before Brownfield singled up the middle for the game's first hit. But, the BG senior came back to strike out Dodson for out number three.

After Hayes worked around a two-out error and set down the Falcons, the Flashes took the lead in the third. Dillow retired the first two hitters, getting Duffy to hit a soft liner back to the circle and whiffing Hunter Brancifort. But, Roush drew a walk, and she came all the way around to score on Dobbin's double to left-center.

But, the Falcons answered in the bottom of the inning. Holliday led off with a single into shallow center, and Schrock followed by lining a ball to center for a single, with Holliday rounding second and taking third. From there, she would score on a wild pitch. But, Hayes responded by striking out the next two hitters, then inducing a fly ball to right for the third out.

KSU put runners at first and second on a walk to Tilton and a Brownfield base hit with one down in the fourth, but Dillow struck out both Dodson and Duffy to get out of the inning.

With Gregory set to lead off the Falcon half of the fourth, the umpires called the teams off the field and, after a short discussion, the game was suspended. As mentioned, it will be resumed at 1:00 p.m. tomorrow.