Falcons Win Ball State Series with Saturday Split

Saturday, April 6

Muncie, IN

1:00 PM

Bowling Green State University

15-19, 3-6

Ball State

26-13, 4-3

Bowling Green

Ball State

Sarah Gonzalez Katie Reiff at Purdue Fort Wayne - March 27 2019

Sarah Gonzalez & the Falcons captured the series at Ball State

Photo by: BGSU Strategic Communications

April 06, 2019 | Softball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2 BGSU-BSU Game One Box Score BGSU-BSU Game Two Box Score

Tremendous team effort results in a 5-4 win in the opener

By: MUNCIE, Ind. (BGSU Athletic Communications)

The Bowling Green State University softball team got contributions from up and down the lineup, in all phases of the game, against Ball State University on Saturday afternoon (April 6). The Falcons topped the preseason Mid-American Conference favorite, 5-4, to capture the teams' weekend series at the Softball Field at First Merchants Ballpark Complex.

The Cardinals salvaged a game in the series with a 2-1, eight-inning victory in the nightcap.

Senior Meredith Miller, who stymied the Cards with a complete-game two-hitter in Friday's 4-1 win in the series opener, threw five innings of scoreless, one-hit relief in Saturday's first game to pick up her second-straight win in the circle.

The Falcons (15-20, 3-7 MAC) outhit the Cardinals, 10-4, in the game, and BG got sparkling defensive plays from Alex Sorgi, Nikki Sorgi and Sarah Gonzalez – among others – to preserve the one-run lead.

Senior Brooke Parker, who struggled in Saturday's first game, bounced back with a gutty pitching performance in the nightcap. But, the Cardinals (27-13, 5-3 MAC) scored an eighth-inning run to pick up the walk-off win.

BGSU-BALL STATE GAME ONE – HOW IT HAPPENED
• The Falcons struck quickly against BSU starter Aeshia Miles in the opener. Senior Alex Sorgi led off the game with a walk, but Miles appeared to bounce back by striking out the next two hitters.
• Appearances can be deceiving, however. No fewer than seven-straight BG batters reached base via hit or walk. Senior Kellie Natham singled to score Sorgi, who had stolen second, and sophomore Nikki Sorgi followed by beating out a bunt for a base hit.
• Then, junior Evelyn Loyola perfectly placed a ball just inside the right-field line, for a single that scored Natham and sent Sorgi to third. Freshman Marissa Mullen walked to load the bases, and sophomore Sarah Gonzalez also drew a base on balls, forcing Natham home with the Falcons' third run.
• Freshman Madeline Dyer followed with a base hit to right, scoring Loyola, but Miles – who threw 41 pitches in the first inning – and the Cardinals finally got out of the inning as Mullen was tagged out attempting to score from second.
• Senior Brooke Parker got off to a shaky start, walking three batters to load the bases. The third of those walks, to Janae Hogg, came after a 14-pitch plate appearance. But, second baseman Nikki Sorgi made the first of many impressive defensive plays for the Falcons in the game, ranging to her right to grab Mackenzie McCarty's flare back up the middle, and stepping on second base to double up Stacy Payton for an unassisted double play. Then, Parker got Amaia Daniel to ground out to Dyer at third.
• In the second inning, Alex Sorgi became the seventh consecutive BG batter to reach base, leading off with an infield single. She took second on a groundout, then scored easily when sophomore Payton Hamm drove a ball to the gap in left-center for a double.
• BG had a 5-0 lead, but the hosts got on the scoreboard with a two-out solo homer off the bat of Madison Lee in the bottom of the second. Then, the Cardinals mounted a rally in the third.
• BSU leadoff hitter Haley Dominique walked, and Payton singled down the left-field line. Hogg walked for the second time in as many trips, loading the bases with no outs.
• A run scored when McCarty's grounder to the right side was mishandled for an infield error, with the bases remaining loaded, and everyone moved up 60 feet on Daniel's single up the middle, with Payton scoring to make it a 5-3 game.
• Miller was summoned from the bullpen, but she walked pinch-hitter Kennedy Wynn to bring the Cardinals within a single run. The bases were still loaded, and there were still no outs.
• However, Miller proceeded to strike out both Kendall Fields and Lee. Then, Trinity Eckerty hit a ball to the left side, out of the reach of third baseman Dyer. Shortstop Gonzalez, however, fielded the ball deep in the hole, raced to third base and beat the runner, Daniel, to the bag with a headlong diving effort. The glove of Gonzalez hit the base a split-second before the runner's cleats, and the Falcons were out of the inning.
• And, believe it or not, neither team would score over the final four innings. BG got a runner to second in the fourth, when junior Taylor Blevins reached on an error, and Hamm followed with a bloop single. But, the Cardinals escaped the jam.
• In the home fourth, leftfielder Blevins made a nice running catch of a foul fly off the bat of Dominique, and a Payton HBP did no damage. Blevins recorded all three putouts that inning.
• The fifth frame saw Dyer in action at the hot corner, as the Falcon freshman threw out three consecutive hitters.
• Gonzalez was robbed of a hit leading off the sixth, as Eckerty made a diving catch in right. Alex Sorgi reached on an infield hit with two down, but a grounder back to the circle ended the half inning.
• Alex Sorgi helped preserve the BG lead in the home half of the sixth. Pinch-hitter Faith Hensley led off the inning with a walk, and promptly stole second. Miller struck out Eckerty, but Dominique followed with a single to center – the only hit Miller would allow in the game. However, Alex Sorgi came up throwing, firing a laser to the plate. Loyola caught the ball on the fly and tagged out Hensley attempting to score the tying run.
• Dominique advanced to second on the throw home, but she was stranded there as Miller got Payton to ground out to Natham at first base.
• In the seventh, Hamm was hit by a pitch, and after Natham's sacrifice bunt, Nikki Sorgi reached on an infield single to the left side. Hamm was forced to hold at second on the play, and Miles was able to get a fly ball to right and a fielder's-choice grounder to retire the side.
• The bottom of the inning saw Miller set down the Cardinals in order. She got Hogg to hit a popup that was grabbed by catcher Loyola, and McCarty hit a fly ball that was caught by Alex Sorgi in center. BSU's last hope, Daniel, popped on up as well, and Dyer made the catch near the third-base bag to give the Falcons the win and clinch the series.

BGSU-BALL STATE GAME ONE STATS & LEADERS
• The Falcons outhit the Cardinals, 10-4. Alex Sorgi, Hamm and Nikki Sorgi each had two hits in the win.
• Alex Sorgi was 2-for-3 with a walk, a stolen base and two runs scored. Hamm also went 2-for-3 at the plate. She had an RBI double and was hit by a pitch.
• Nikki Sorgi went 2-for-4 and scored a run, while Gonzalez was 1-for-2 with a walk, a single and an RBI.
• Dyer had an RBI single, while Loyola and Natham each singled, scored a run and drove in a run.
• Miller pitched five innings of shutout, one-hit relief to pick up the win. She entered the game with the bases loaded and no outs in the third, and after issuing a walk to the first batter she faced, retired the next three.
• Miller walked two hitters and struck out three to pick up her second win in as many games vs. the Cardinals.
• Miles suffered the loss for the hosts, allowing five runs, all earned, and 10 hits in her complete-game effort. She walked three and struck out five.
• At the plate, four different Cardinals had one hit apiece. Dominique singled and walked twice, while Payton had a hit, walk and a hit-by-pitch.

BGSU-BALL STATE GAME TWO – HOW IT HAPPENED
• The Cardinals got off to a great start in game two. BSU starter Darcie Huber worked a one-two-three first inning, and Dominique led off the bottom of the inning with a home run to right off of Parker.
• Hogg doubled over leftfielder Blevins' head with one down in the inning, but Parker struck out Payton, then got McCarty to ground out to second.
• After Huber retired the first six hitters she faced, Gonzalez led off the third inning with a double down the left-field line. One out later, Dyer's blooper landed in shallow left, and the freshman made it all the way to second on the play, for her first extra-base hit as a Falcon. Gonzalez, who had to wait to see if the ball would be caught, advanced to third.
• Alex Sorgi walked to load the bases, and Blevins hit a ball to the left side of the infield. Shortstop Hailey Demnianiuk fielded it and ran to the bag to force Dyer, but Gonzalez scored to tie the game.
• Parker worked out of a third-inning jam. Kim Manuel led off with an infield single and continued to second on a BG throwing error. Hogg followed by drawing a walk, and a wild pitch moved Manuel and pinch-runner Becca Clanton into scoring position with no outs. But, Parker proceeded to strike out the four, five and six hitters, getting Payton, McCarty and Daniel to swing and miss.
• Tieghan Morio took over for Huber in the circle and worked a perfect fourth, and the Cards threatened in the bottom of the inning. With two outs, Olivia Huffman was hit by a pitch, stole second and took third on a wild pitch. Parker, however, got Dominique to hit a bouncer back to the circle for out number three.
• Gonzalez led off the fifth with a single, and took second on junior Logan Everett's sac bunt, but Morio struck out the next two hitters.
• The bottom of the inning saw Hogg walk and Payton single with one out. But, Parker got Eckerty looking, then induced Daniel to ground out to Gonzalez at short.
• Both teams went in order in the sixth, and the Falcons threatened in the seventh. Senior Kali Holcomb led off by beating out a grounder to short for a pinch-hit single, Then, junior Kendyl Wheeler beat out a bunt for another infield hit, with Holcomb going all the way to third. Wheeler rounded first and was caught in a rundown before being tagged out. Alyssa Rothwell entered the game for the Cardinals, and struck out the next two Falcons.
• In the bottom of the seventh, Parker struck out Dominique and threw out Manuel after a ball was hit back to the circle. Hogg drew a two-out walk, but Parker struck out Payton for the third time in the game, sending the contest to extra innings.
• Dyer led off the eighth with a single to left, and Alex Sorgi's bunt single put two runners aboard before a Blevins sac bunt moved those runners into scoring position.
• Hamm walked to load the bases, but Rothwell struck out the next batter, then caught a popup back to the circle for the third out.
• And, the Cardinals won it in the bottom of the inning. Eckerty singled off of the glove of Parker, and Daniel then came up with an opposite-field hit, and the ball went all the way down the line and into the right-field corner. Pinch-runner Miles came around to score the winning run on the play.

BGSU-BALL STATE GAME TWO STATS & LEADERS
• For the third time in as many games, the Falcons outhit the Cardinals, this time by a 7-6 count. Dyer and Gonzalez each went 2-for-3 with a double.
• Dyer's double, as mentioned, was her first career extra-base hit, while Gonzalez scored BG's lone run in the game.
• Holcomb and Wheeler each were 1-for-1 in the game, while Alex Sorgi had a hit and a walk in four plate appearances.
• Six different Cardinals had one hit apiece. Hogg was 1-for-1 and had three of her team's four walks.
• Rothwell, the third BSU pitcher, picked up the win. She allowed two hits and walked one batter in 1 2/3 innings of scoreless relief.
• Parker allowed six hits and issued four walks in her complete-game effort. The senior struck out 10 batters in the game.

UP NEXT
• The Falcons head to Oxford for a Wednesday (April 10) game vs. Miami. That contest will begin at 3:00 p.m.
• Then, the Orange and Brown will host Buffalo in a three-game set at Meserve Field next weekend. The teams will play a Friday (April 12) single game, beginning at 3:00 p.m., and a Saturday (April 13) doubleheader that starts at 1:00 p.m.

FOLLOW THE FALCONS
For more information on all things BGSU softball, follow the Falcons on Twitter (@BGAthletics and @BGSUSoftball) and Instagram (@bgsu_softball) as well as on the web right here at BGSUFalcons.com.