Payton's Perfecto Propels Falcons to Saturday Sweep at CSU

Saturday, February 13

Cleveland, Ohio

12:00 PM

Bowling Green State University

2-1

Cleveland State

1-2

Bowling Green

Cleveland State

Payton Gottshall in Chattanooga - Feb 2020

Payton Gottshall threw just the second perfect game in BGSU softball history

Photo by: Daryl Banther

February 13, 2021 | Softball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2 BGSU-CSU Game 1 Box BGSU-CSU Game 2 Box Game 1 XML Live Stats Game 2 XML Live Stats

BGSU erases six-run deficit to win nightcap

By: by Mike Cihon, BGSU Athletics

CLEVELAND, Ohio – For the second time in as many days, Payton Gottshall pitched a masterpiece in downtown Cleveland. On Saturday (Feb. 13), the Bowling Green State University redshirt freshman threw a perfect game as the Falcons downed Cleveland State University, 2-0.

The perfect game is just the second in school history, and the first in 28 years.

In game two, the Falcons erased a six-run deficit to defeat the Vikings, 8-7, in nine innings. Greta L'Esperance doubled to score Makailah Dees with what proved to be the winning run, and Gottshall picked up the victory in relief. After striking out 16 of the 21 batters she faced in the opener, Gottshall pitched 7 1/3 innings of relief in the nightcap.

In that second game, Gottshall allowed only an unearned run on four hits, while striking out 15.

NOTE OF THE DAY
• Payton Gottshall pitched in three of BGSU's four games in Cleveland, picking up the win in all three. In 21 1/3 innings of work, she allowed five hits and struck out 51 without walking a batter.
• On Friday, she struck out a school-record 20 batters in a 3-0 win, allowing just one hit in a complete-game shutout. Then, on Saturday, Gottshall had a combined 31 strikeouts and picked up wins in both ends of the twinbill to improve to 3-0 on the young season.

Payton Hamm led the Falcons with four hits in Saturday's twinbill, while Greta L'Esperance added three and Evelyn Loyola, Madi McCoy and Nikki Sorgi had two apiece. Loyola also walked three times on the afternoon.

Gottshall threw a perfect game with 16 Ks against Cleveland State on Saturday … and it wasn't even her best line of the season. Her perfect game netted a game score of 93. A day earlier, she struck out 20 in a one-hit shutout, a game score of 95.
— Graham Hays (@grahamhays) February 13, 2021

QUOTING COACH WILLIS
"This was certainly a memorable opening weekend, and I was proud of the grit I saw from our program today. They did a great job of taking care of game one with Payton Gottshall throwing a perfect game. That doesn't happen very often in baseball or softball so that was fun for our program."

"Game two started off rough, but I was proud that our players continued to grind it out. The adversity they faced in this game will pay off down the road. They fought back, and we had so many players step up in the lineup. I am proud of how the hitters fought from behind and executed their offense, the way they can! Gottshall did a great job helping to regain control of the tempo on defense and threw another incredible game."

GAME ONE – HOW IT HAPPENED
• The Falcons scored a pair of early runs in Saturday's opener, and the first run proved to be more than enough for Payton Gottshall. CSU freshman Jenna Watts was making her first collegiate start in the circle, and Greta L'Esperance led off the game with an infield hit and promptly stole second. She took third on a ground ball by Peyton Dolejs, and scored on Madi McCoy's single up the middle.
• In the second inning, Payton Hamm led off with a double to left-center, her first of four hits in the double dip. Sarah Gonzalez bunted Hamm to third, and Logan Everett hit a liner that was caught in right field, but Hamm tagged and scored the Falcons' second run of the day.
• That was all of the scoring BG could muster against Watts, who allowed only three hits over the final five innings. Evelyn Loyola walked with two outs in the third inning, and Dolejs singled with two down in the fifth, but BGSU did not seriously threaten again until the seventh.
• Watts had retired 10 of the last 11 batters, and 13 of 15 BG hitters, before Gonzalez singled to lead off the seventh. Everett bunted Gonzalez to second, and Maycee Godbolt followed with a pinch-hit single to center. On the Godbolt hit, however, Gonzalez had to hold at second to make sure the ball would not be caught, and Watts was able to retire the next two batters.
• But, it didn't matter, as Cleveland State never got a runner on base against Gottshall. She struck out 16 of the 21 hitters she faced, and did not allow a ball to be hit out of the infield. Gottshall struck out the side in the first, third and sixth innings, with two K's in three of the other four frames.
• Gottshall allowed three infield grounders and two popups, and she threw 66 strikes among her 93 total pitches.
• BGSU had six total hits against Watts, with six different Falcons getting one hit apiece. Watts issued two walks and struck out a pair.

GAME TWO – HOW IT HAPPENED
• The Falcons scored an early run before the Vikings responded with seven-straight scores. L'Esperance led off the contest by hitting a Taylor Betz pitch for a double down the left-field line, and Nikki Sorgi's sac bunt sent L'Esperance to third. She was called out on a play at the plate after a McCoy grounder, but Loyola followed with a single, with McCoy coming all the way around to score after a throwing error by the left fielder.
• But, the Vikings responded with six runs over the next two innings against BG pitchers Hannah Davies and Harlie Vannatter. The big blow in a four-run first inning was a three-run homer by Gabby Shackelford. Vannatter entered the contest and struck out a pair of Vikings to end the inning, but a Sydney Bajusz two-run homer made it a 6-1 game after two innings.
• Betz set the Falcons down in order in both the second and third frames, and the Vikes added to the lead in the bottom of the third. Gottshall, who had come into the contest in the second, hit Alexa Sieger with a pitch, but then struck out the next two batters. Jenna Deang, however, reached on a two-out error to put runners at second and third, and a Bajusz seeing-eye single got through the middle of the infield to plate Sieger with an unearned run. On the play, BGSU centerfielder Makailah Dees threw out Deang attempting to score.
• BG got a run back in the fourth, as Hamm doubled to score McCoy. But, a baserunning miscue prevented the Falcons from cutting further into the CSU lead, and it was a 7-2 game when the side was retired.
• Gottshall allowed a one-out infield hit in the bottom of the fourth, but then proceeded to retire the next 17 Vikings. After the hit, she struck out seven of the next eight hitters she faced.
• Betz allowed only four hits through the first five frames, before the Falcons erupted for a four-run sixth. The CSU hurler retired the first hitter of the inning, but then Sorgi doubled to left, and McCoy reached on a grounder, as a Viking infielder looked Sorgi back to second before throwing late to first.
• Loyola walked to load the bases, and Hamm followed with a line drive off of Betz's leg for a single that scored Sorgi. Everett was hit by a pitch, with McCoy crossing the plate, and a Gonzalez grounder to the right side brought Loyola home from third. The Vikings' shortstop was unable to field a hot shot off the bat of pinch-hitter Goldbolt, as Hamm scored to make it a 7-6 game.
• In the seventh, a L'Esperance liner was caught by the third baseman, but Sorgi reached base on an error. Betz retired the next hitter, and got two strikes on Loyola. With a 1-2 count, Loyola took two pitches for balls, then hit a full-count offering for a single to right-center, with Sorgi sliding home just ahead of the throw to tie the game. Hamm followed with a single to put the potential go-ahead run at second, but Everett was robbed when second baseman Deang made a diving catch of her liner to end the inning.
• Gottshall retired the side in the bottom of the inning, and BG very nearly took the lead in the eighth. With a runner (Everett) placed on second, Gonzalez hit a 3-2 pitch that landed near the right-field line, eluding a pair of CSU fielders. The ball was ruled foul, however, and Betz was able to retire Gonzalez as well as the next two Falcons.
• Gottshall got out of the bottom of the eighth with relative ease. On a grounder by pinch-hitter Aly Packish, Shackelford was called out for interference as she ran into BG shortstop McCoy, and Gottshall then struck out the next two hitters.
• BG broke through in the top of the ninth. L'Esperance led off with a double that scored Dees from second with what proved to be the winning run. Sorgi then pushed a bunt past the charging first baseman to put runners at the corners, but reliever Hannah Griffin entered the game and was able to retire the next three Falcons to avert further damage. Griffin was the beneficiary of some luck, as a Loyola scorcher was hit directly at first baseman Taylor Duncan.
• In the bottom of the ninth, Deang popped up a bunt attempt, with Gonzalez grabbing it out of the air. Bajusz, who was 3-of-4 in the game to that point, struck out on three pitches before Kiera Frascone beat out an infield grounder. She stole second base, putting two runners in scoring position, but Gottshall proceeded to strike out Duncan to give the Falcons the win.
• Gottshall, as mentioned, picked up the victory in relief. She allowed one run (unearned) and four hits in 7 1/3 innings of work, striking out 15 without issuing a walk.
• Gottshall threw 85 of her 109 pitches for strikes.
• Betz took the loss, giving up four earned runs in eight-plus innings in the circle. She walked two and struck out six.
• At the plate, Hamm was 3-for-5 with a double, a run scored and two runs batted in. Sorgi was 2-for-2 with two runs scored, while Loyola was 2-for-3 with two walks, a run and an RBI.
•McCoy had a hit and scored three times, while L'Esperance was 2-for-5 with two doubles and an RBI. Everett and Gonzelez each had an RBI as well.
• Bajusz led the way for the hosts, with three hits, two runs and three RBI. Shackelford also drove in three runs with her first-inning homer, and Frascone was 2-for-4 in the game.

NOTEWORTHY
• Payton Gottshall's perfect game was just the second in school history. Jennifer Wolf threw the first perfect game by a Falcon in a win over Dayton on April 7, 1993.
• Gottshall had five games with double-digit strikeout totals last season, and now has had three in as many games this year.
• Gottshall now has two complete-game shutouts this season, matching her total for the 2020 campaign.
• She ends the weekend with an earned-run average of 0.00, as she surrendered just one unearned run in 21 1/3 innings of work.
• Gottshall allowed the Vikings to bat just .072 against her on the weekend. She faced a total of 70 batters and allowed five hits, all singles. She struck out 51 batters and issued exactly zero walks.
• At the plate, Evelyn Loyola hit .556 with an on-base percentage of .733 and a slugging pct. of .889 on the weekend. She went 5-for-9 with a homer and a team-leading four RBI, and she walked six times.
• Payton Hamm hit .444, going 4-for-9 with a pair of doubles, while Greta L'Esperance had a BG-best six hits and tied Loyola for the team lead with eight total bases in the four games.

UP NEXT
• The Falcons head to Rock Hill, S.C., for next weekend's Winthrop Kickoff Tournament (Feb. 19-21). BGSU is scheduled to face Radford, Stony Brook, Marshall, Furman and the host school in that tourney.

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.

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