Ohio State closed out Senior Weekend in the best way possible, notching a 5-0 shutout win over Michigan State highlighted by the pitching of Allison Smith and some timely hitting in the second and fifth innngs.
With the win, the Buckeyes improved to 24-19 and won for the sixth time in the last eight games. Michigan State falls to 14-26.
It was Ohio State’s fifth series win over the last eight weekends and second in a row after taking two of three at Illinois last Friday-Saturday. The Buckeyes played all 43 games this season against conference opponents and defeated every team on their schedule at least once.
URBANA, Ill. – It was a good day for the Ohio State softball field at Eichelberger Field in Urbana, Ill. Just how good? How does 17 runs, 16 hits and just one run allowed in a doubleheader sweep sound? That’s what Ohio State produced on Friday as they followed up a 12-0 five-inning win and game one with a 5-1 victory in game two to improve to 20-17 on the season. Illinois is now 22-16.
The win in game was one was highlighted by an offensive onslaught that included 11 runs in the fourth inning, including a two-run home run by Sam Hackenbracht and RBI singles off the bats of Carley Gaskill, Taylor Pack and Avery Clark. The Buckeyes chased Illinois pitcher Sydney Sickles out of the game after 3.1 innings and six earned run allowed. She came into the contest with the fifth-best ERA in the Big Ten.
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Ohio State belted four home runs and got a strikeout with the bases loaded in the eighth inning to split a Saturday doubleheader against Indiana. The Buckeyes and Hoosiers wrap up their series tomorrow at 2:30 p.m. in a contest that will air live on BTN.
After dropping the first game of the day, Ohio State (14-12) rebounded in game two, building an 8-2 lead in the fifth inning before Indiana (13-14) stormed back to score seven times in the fifth and sixth innings. The Buckeyes eventually went ahead 10-9 on an RBI single in the top of the eighth inning and thwarted a bases-loaded rally by the Hoosiers in the bottom half of the inning.
COLUMBUS, Ohio – The Ohio State softball team wrapped up its four-game series versus Rutgers on Sunday by finishing Saturday’s suspended game, which turned out to a 13-5 six-inning Buckeye victory, before falling in the series finale, 6-5. Ohio State is 17-14 overall on the season and won three of four games this weekend against the Scarlet Knights (7-25).
The Short Story
Sunday’s action picked up in the bottom of the fifth inning on yesterday’s game that was suspended due to rain. When play resumed, the Buckeye bats struck for nine runs – including a back-breaking grand slam off the bat of Niki Carver – to register a 13-5 series-clinching win. In the second game, Rutgers scored once in the top of the seventh to take a 6-5 and held on for the victory.