Late-Game Heroics Send Falcons to Saturday

Friday, May 13

Oxford, OH

1:00 PM

Bowling Green State University

31-18

Ohio

23-25

Bowling Green

Ohio

Payton Gottshall and Reagan Williamson v CMU - May 13 2022

Payton Gottshall threw all 17 innings in a pair of BGSU wins on Friday (photo courtesy Miami Athletics)

May 13, 2022 | Softball

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BGSU bounces the second- and third-seeded teams from the MAC Tournament

By: by Mike Cihon, BGSU Strategic Communications

OXFORD, Ohio – The Bowling Green State University softball team came up big in two elimination games on Friday (May 13), capturing a pair of Mid-American Conference Tournament victories. BGSU knocked both Ohio and Central Michigan out of the tourney, with a 5-3 win over the Bobcats and a 1-0 victory against the Chippewas at Miami Softball Stadium.

In the opener, Sophie Weber drove in all five runs for the Falcons (32-18), including a two-run single in the 10th that plated the go-ahead runs. Weber was 3-for-4 with a walk in the win.

In game two, Reagan Williamson's seventh-inning homer provided the only scoring of the contest.

Through it all, Payton Gottshall kept the opponents at bay. She threw all 17 innings on the day, firing a total of 282 pitches and picking up a pair of wins.

The Falcons, after knocking the second-seeded Bobcats (23-25) and third-seeded Chippewas (27-26) out of the tourney, now face top-seeded Miami on Saturday afternoon.

NOTEWORTHY
• Where to start? How about here? BGSU had not won a MAC Tournament game since 2013 before winning two on Friday.
• The Falcons now have an all-time record of 26-34 in league tourney games.
• Payton Gottshall now has 25 wins this season, the second-highest total in program history.
• Gottshall increased her school-record total to 355 strikeouts this season. She now has 765 career strikeouts, and is just three away from the school record of 768, amassed by BGSU Hall-of-Famer Liz Vrabel.
• Sophie Weber's total of five RBI in the win over Ohio was a career high, and was the highest total by a Falcon in just over a year (since Madi McCoy drove in five runs in a win at Northern Illinois on May 8, 2021).
• BGSU's total of 32 wins is the program's highest since the 2012 team won 36 games.
• BGSU went 3-0 vs. Central Michigan this season. Gottshall threw all 21 innings vs. the Chippewas, going 3-0 with an ERA of 0.00. She allowed just three hits in a doubleheader at Meserve Field on May 4, with a two-hitter in the opener and a one-hit shutout in the nightcap.
• Gottshall allowed just an unearned run vs. CMU this year, giving up only five hits in those 21 innings.

BGSU-OHIO – HOW IT HAPPENED
• Friday's first game lasted over four hours and saw Payton Gottshall throw a total of 185 pitches. That wasn't even the highest total of the game, as Ohio starter Mackensie Kohl threw 192 pitchers in her complete-game effort.
• Neither pitcher allowed a run over the first three innings. BGSU threatened in the top of the first, as Peyton Dolejs singled and Bailey Sample walked with one out. A two-out passed ball put both runners in scoring position, but a ground ball to short got Kohl out of the inning.
• The Bobcats got the leadoff runner aboard in seven of the game's 10 innings, but Gottshall repeatedly worked out of trouble. Allie Englant walked in the first, but third baseman Sarah Gonzalez fielded a Yasmine Logan grounder and began a nifty 5-4-3 double play.
• In the third, Tori Walker was hit by a pitch, but Gottshall struck out the next two hitters – reaching the 750-strikeout mark for her career in the process – before getting Englant to fly out to center.
• BGSU broke through in the fourth with a two-out rally. Lexi Carver's liner was just out of reach of shortstop Megan McMenemy for a single, and Gonzalez followed with a base hit to right. Then, Sophie Weber drove a ball to the wall in left for a two-run double to give the Orange and Brown the lead.
• The Bobcats got a run back in the home half of the inning. Logan singled with one out, and Annalia Paoli reached on a grounder to short with two down. Then, Caroline Spacek's drive to right-center was just out of the reach of diving centerfielder Greta L'Esperance, with Logan scoring on the play. A walk loaded the bases before Gottshall struck out Sophia Bernard to retire the side.
• And, the 'Cats took the lead in the fifth. Lauren Yuhas led off with a walk, and a one-out homer by Yuhas gave Ohio a 3-2 lead.
• Each team got a sixth-inning baserunner, but the score was still 3-2 when Weber led off the seventh with a homer to left that tied the score. It was Weber's first round-tripper of the season. Dolejs walked with one out, and Sample was hit by a pitch, but BGSU could not plate another run.
• Yuhas was hit by a pitch to lead off the bottom of the seventh, and Englant bunted her to second. Gottshall struck out Logan, but a walk to McMenemy put a pair of runners on base for Paoli. Her liner, however, was caught by Makailah Dees in right-center.
• Gonzalez and Weber each walked with two outs in the eighth, but third baseman Paoli made a lunging grab of a line drive off the bat of Dees.
• In the home half of the eighth, Spacek singled and Bernard was hit by a pitch, putting two on with none out. But, Tori Walker popped up on a bunt attempt, with Gottshall grabbing the ball out of the air, and the BG hurler then struck out both Brooke Rice and Yuhas.
• The ninth saw L'Esperance reach on an error and take second on a Dolejs sac bunt, but the Falcons could not take advantage.
• In the bottom of the inning, Englant singled up the middle and Logan reached on an infield error, putting two on with no outs for the second-straight inning. McMenemy bunted the runners over, but first baseman Weber caught Paoli's soft liner, and Gottshall got Spacek looking.
• Maycee Godbolt walked to begin the 10th frame, and Carver bunted her to second. Gonzalez followed with a single past the shortstop, and Godbolt – who had to wait to see if the ball would get through – was safe ahead of the throw to third, with Gonzalez taking second on the play. Then, Weber came through once again with a single to center. Godbolt scored easily and Gonzalez slid in safely to give the Falcons a two-run lead.
• In the bottom of the inning, Gottshall retired the first two batters, but pinch-hitter Caitlin Fogue was hit by a pitch. Another pinch-hitter, Alexis Dawe, singled to left-center to send Fogue to third. But, Gottshall got Englant to lift a fly ball to left, with Dolejs retreating to make the catch and end the marathon.

Gallery: (5-13-2022) Softball v Ohio - May 13 2022 G1

BGSU-CMU – HOW IT HAPPENED
• The final game of the day saw both pitchers fire complete-game gems. Gottshall and CMU starter Kaitlyn Bean each faced just two batters over the minimum through the first six innings (and Gottshall would face just two over the minimum for the entire game).
• Reagan Williamson led off the second inning with a single, but was erased on a double play.
• In the third, Weber walked and Gonzalez bunted her to second. With two outs, a L'Esperance single up the middle sent Weber to third, with L'Esperance taking second on the play. But, a fly ball to left ended that threat.
• For Bean, that fly ball was the first of 11-straight Falcon batters that she retired, as BGSU did not have another baserunner until the seventh.
• Gottshall retired the first eight batters she faced in the game, striking out the side in the second. In the third, Williamson made a nifty catch of a foul pop near the screen, and Dolejs made a spectacular grab as she crashed into the fence in foul territory. Sammi Mills gave CMU a baserunner with a two-out single in that third frame, but Gottshall got Abbie Tolmie to ground out to Sample at short.
• Central's second hit came with two down in the fifth, as L'Esperance nearly made a diving catch of Emily Bracamonte's drive to left-center, but the ball landed for a double. L'Esperance, however, grabbed a ball off the bat of Maddie Springer to retire the side.
• Gottshall set down the Chippewas in order in the sixth, and Williamson gave her pitcher a lead to work with in the seventh, with a one-out homer to left-center. Carver had a two-out single before Bean got an inning-ending strikeout.
• But, in the bottom of the inning, L'Esperance tracked down Michaleigh Vallimont's fly ball in left-center, and Gottshall then struck out both Caitlyn Britton and Skylar Coberley to end the game and send the Falcons to Saturday.

Gallery: (5-13-2022) Softball v CMU - May 13 2022 G2

STATS, LEADERS & NOTES
• Gottshall picked up the win in the opener, allowing three runs and eight hits in 10 innings of work vs. Ohio. She walked four and struck out 10, throwing 119 of her 185 pitches for strikes.
• Kohl worked all 10 innings as well, giving up five runs and nine hits while walking five and whiffing 10. Kohl threw 192 pitches, including 115 strikes.
• Weber had a spectacular game, going 3-for-4 with a walk, a double and a homer. She had all five RBI for BGSU.
• Gonzalez was 2-for-4 with a walk and a pair of runs scored, while Dolejs had a hit and a walk. L'Esperance, Williamson and Carver each singled, while Sample and Godbolt each drew a base on balls.
• Logan and Spacek each went 2-for-5 for Ohio, with Logan scoring twice and driving in a pair of runs.
• The teams combined to leave 24 runners on base (11 for BGSU, 13 for Ohio).
• BG's second game of the day saw the teams combine to leave only five runners on base.
• Williamson had two of BGSU's four hits, including the seventh-inning homer that produced the game's only run.
• L'Esperance and Carver had base hits, with Weber drawing a walk.
• Gottshall picked up the win with a two-hit shutout, striking out eight without walking a batter. She threw 97 pitches, including 61 strikes, vs. the Chippewas.
• Bean took a two-hit shutout into the seventh inning as well, before finishing with a four-hitter. She allowed just one run, walking one and striking out six.

UP NEXT
• The Falcons face top-seeded Miami on Saturday (May 14) at 3:00 p.m. Miami needs just one victory to claim the league tourney title. If BGSU wins, the teams would play a second game to decide the MAC Tournament champion.

FOLLOW THE FALCONS
• For more information on 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.