Errors are BGSU's Undoing in Abilene

Tuesday, March 6

Abilene, TX

5:00 PM ET

Bowling Green State University

11-5

Abilene Christian

5-11

Bowling Green

Abilene Christian

Kali Holcomb had 2 hits in each game, & now has 18 RBI this season

Photo by: BGSU Strategic Communications

March 06, 2018 | Softball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2

Wildcats take advantage of extra outs to pick up Tuesday sweep

By: ABILENE, Texas (BGSU Athletic Communications)

The Bowling Green State University softball team outhit host Abilene Christian in both games of Tuesday's (March 6) doubleheader, but errors proved to be the Falcons' undoing. The host Wildcats benefitted from three BGSU errors in each game and swept the twinbill by scores of 3-2 and 8-4 at Poly Wells Field.

LINKS
BGSU-ACU GAME 1 STATISTICS: PDF
BGSU-ACU GAME 2 STATISTICS: PDF

BGSU outhit the hosts, 17-10, in the doubleheader, and the Falcons had four extra-base hits to the Wildcats' two. But, eight of ACU's 11 runs on Tuesday – including six runs in the second game – were unearned.

The three junior transfers in the Falcons' batting order – Kali Holcomb, Kaylee Parker and Kellie Natham – combined for 10 hits and drove in all six of BG's runs on Tuesday. Holcomb was 4-for-7 with a double, a homer and three runs scored.

Parker, like Holcomb a native of Texas, went 3-for-6 at the plate, while Natham was 3-of-7 with a double. All three drove in two runs in the twinbill.

In the opener, junior pitcher Meredith Miller – another Texas native – pitched well enough to win, allowing only one earned run and four hits in a complete-game effort. But, a pair of unearned runs were enough for the Wildcats to escape with a one-run victory.

In the nightcap, the BG offense did everything except score in the first three innings, while the Wildcats pushed a run across the plate in the first inning, then took advantage of three Falcon errors in a seven-run second.

QUOTING COACH WILLIS
"We hit the ball well at times, and were unlucky as Abilene Christian's fielders made some nice plays. We also hit some balls very hard, but directly at fielders tonight. But, Abilene Christian took advantage of our mistakes in the field in both of tonight's games. We can't afford to make errors that give our opponent extra outs to work with."

BGSU-ACU GAME ONE

ACU starting pitcher Hannah Null set down the Falcons in order in the first inning, and allowed only a leadoff single by junior Kali Holcomb in the second. Junior Alex Sorgi had a bunt single with two outs in the third frame, but Null kept the Brown and Orange off of the scoreboard.
BG starter Meredith Miller allowed the leadoff batter to reach base in each of the first three frames, but escaped danger in the first two innings. In the first, a pair of hit-by-pitches put two runners on with one out, and Miller went to a 3-0 count on the next batter. But, she rallied back to get a strikeout, then induced the next hitter to fly out to right.
In the second, Braegan Hamilton led off with a triple, but was forced to hold there on a grounder to third. Miller then got back-to-back strikeouts for the second and third outs.
But, in the third inning, the hosts took the lead. Donelle Johnson led off with a walk, and took second on a bunt single by Briana Tijerina. The bunts just kept on coming, as a sac bunt put the runners in scoring position, and another bunt scored the game's first run in the form of Johnson. Tijerina also scored on the play due to a BG error.
But, as has been the case for much of the Texas trip, the Falcon bats had a quick response. After a line drive produced the first out, senior Aspen Searle drew a walk, and Holcomb's sharp single to center put runners at first and second. A popup gave Null her second out, but junior Kellie Natham came through with a double to left, scoring both Searle and Holcomb to tie the game at 2-2.
BG put a runner in scoring position with one out in the fifth. Senior Laine Simmons led off with a single, and pinch-runner Taylor Blevins advanced all the way to third on a sac bunt by junior Hannah Giammarino. But, a bunt attempt was popped up, with Null making the catch, and the ACU hurler then nabbed another popup to retire the side.
And, the Wildcats took advantage of an error in the bottom of the inning to score an unearned run. That error was followed by a fielder's choice for the first out. A stolen base and a strikeout put the go-ahead run at second base with two outs, and Kayla Keeling came through with a single up the middle that scored Peyton Hedrick.
After Null struck out the first two batters of the sixth, junior Kaylee Parker drew a walk, and Natham followed with a single. But, a grounder to third produced an inning-ending fielder's choice. And, Null retired the side in order in the seventh to close out the one-run win.
Null picked up the complete-game victory, allowing two runs on six hits. She walked two Falcons and struck out eight in improving to 5-6 on the year.
Miller, as mentioned, suffered the hard-luck loss. She gave up only one earned run and four hits, walking three batters and striking out six. Miller dropped to 6-2 on the year.
Both Holcomb and Natham went 2-for-3 at the plate, with Holcomb scoring a run and Natham driving in both of BG's runs with her fourth inning double. Searle walked and scored in the contest.
Hamilton had two of the Wildcats' four hits, including a triple.

BGSU-ACU GAME TWO

For the Falcons, the second game had one nightmarish turn after another in the first few frames. After three innings, both teams had five hits, but the Wildcats had an 8-0 lead.
The Falcons outhit the hosts, 11-6, in the game, but bad things happened in threes to the visitors. The BG bats were victimized by several sparkling fielding plays, multiple line drives landed just foul, and on several occasions, scorching shots just happened to be hit directly at those ACU fielders.
BGSU left the bases loaded in each of the first two innings. Searle led off the game by crushing a Calie Burris pitch off the wall in left for a triple. Alex Sorgi beat out a roller toward third for an infield hit, but Searle was forced to hold at third. Then, freshman Sammy Dees was hit by a pitch to load the bases. Holcomb came to the plate, and lined a pitch over the wall in left, just a few feet foul. Instead of a grand slam, the game remained scoreless, and several pitches later, ACU shortstop Hedrick ranged to her right and made a diving catch of Holcomb's liner for the first out. Then, an infield popup was followed by a grounder that resulted in an inning-ending force play at third.
And, the ball bounced in favor of the Wildcats in the bottom of the inning. After a one-out walk, Hedrick's hard-hit ball was just out of reach of diving shortstop Searle. The roller glanced off the edge of her glove and caromed into no-man's land, with the seeing-eye double putting two runners in scoring position. An infield grounder scored the game's first run.
In the second inning, freshman Sarah Gonzalez led off with a single to center, and sophomore Logan Everett followed by smoking a ball toward the gap in left-center. But, left fielder Caroline Adair ran it down for the first out.
The next hitter, sophomore Kendyl Wheeler, drew a walk, and Searle scorched a Burris pitch for the second-straight at-bat. This time, however, the ball was hit directly at the center fielder for the second out. Alex Sorgi reached on an error to load the bases, but Hedrick leaped to grab a looping liner off the bat of Dees to enable Burris to somehow escape the inning unscathed.
In the bottom of the inning, a two-out error opened the door for a big inning, and the Wildcats walked right on in. With one out, back-to-back singles and a walk loaded the bases. BG starter Brooke Parker got the next batter to hit a grounder to Gonzalez, and the third baseman fired home to get the second out. But, a walk to Johnson forced home a run to give the hosts a 2-0 lead.
Then, Hedrick's fly ball bounced in and out of the glove of a BG outfielder, resulting in all three runners scoring. An infield error put runners at the corners, and Keeling singled to score another run. Then, Brianna Barnhill singled, and continued all the way to third when the ball got by the outfielder. Two more runs scored on the play, giving ACU an 8-0 advantage.
Holcomb led off the third by hitting a drive to left that was caught at the wall. Kaylee Parker singled, but when the throw back into the infield nearly got away, the junior was caught between first and second and was tagged out at first in a bang-bang play. Natham followed with a single, and took second on a passed ball, but a Gonzalez liner was nabbed by the third baseman.
BGSU junior Kiley Sosby, who had come on to get the final out of the second inning, retired the side in the third, and BG threatened again in the fourth.
Burris left the game after somehow shutting out the Falcons through three shaky innings, and Everett greeted new pitcher Shelby Craig by lining a ball under the glove of a diving second baseman for a single. Wheeler hit a screamer, but the ball was directly at the third baseman. One out later, freshman Payton Hamm walked, but another hard-hit ball off the bat of Dees was caught, this time in center field.
Sosby worked a one-two-three fourth, and Holcomb led off the Falcon fifth. After hitting a ball over the left-field wall (but foul) in her first at-bat, and hitting a shot that was caught at the wall in the third, Holcomb left no doubt in the fifth. This time, the junior's drive to left was fair, and landed on the other side of the wall for a solo homer.
In the sixth, Searle singled with one out, and Hamm drew her second walk in as many plate appearances. With two outs, Holcomb lined a ball that went off the third baseman's glove and down the left-field line for a run-scoring double. Then, Kaylee Parker singled to center, with Hamm scoring easily and Holcomb sliding in safely, just ahead of a nice throw by center fielder Hamilton. Null, the game-one winner, became the Wildcats' third pitcher of game two, and got a foul fly to left that ended the inning.
Sosby worked out of a bases-loaded jam to keep BG's deficit at four runs after six innings, but Null set down the Falcons in order in the seventh.
Kaylee Parker went 3-for-4 in the game, with two RBI, while Searle and Holcomb each were 2-for-4. Searle had a triple and scored a run, while Holcomb doubled, homers, scored twice and drove in a pair of teammates.
Hamm came off the bench to draw two walks and score a run.
Six different Wildcats had one hit apiece in game two. Hedrick had a double, while Johnson was 0-for-1, but walked three times, scored two runs and drove in one.
Brooke Parker suffered the loss, allowing two earned runs and five hits. Sosby pitched four-and-a-third innings of scoreless, one-hit relief, striking out six.
Craig, the second of three ACU pitchers, picked up the win despite allowing all four BG runs and six hits in two-and-two-thirds innings. Burris allowed five hits in three innings while also walking a batter and hitting another, but somehow did not give up a run.
And, Null, the Wildcats' third pitcher of the game, retired all four Falcons she faced.

UP NEXT

BGSU will take part in the University of Memphis Tournament this weekend. The Falcons are scheduled to face Indiana State and Mississippi Valley State on Friday (March 9), Tennessee State and Memphis on Saturday (March 10), and Butler on Sunday morning (March 11).

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