Sports
Ohio Softball Sweeps Saturday Doubleheader With Canisius
By: Kaleb Carter
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Game One
Lauren McClary posted her fourth shutout of the season, as she cut through the Canisius Golden Griffins with six strikeouts in seven innings of scoreless softball en route to a 4-0 Bobcats victory.
McClary ran into some trouble in the top of seventh when she loaded the bases on three of the six hits she would allow on the day. She escaped trouble by inducing a two-out ground ball that brought the game to its conclusion.
Coach Jodi Hermanek was glowing in her praise of the day McClary had.
“She’s (McClary) been just hitting spots,” Hermanek said. “It was an easy game to call for her because we were setting up batters productively and she just had a lot of energy today.”
The Bobcats jumped out to a quick 2-0 lead in the first, which turned out to be the only runs they needed on the day. An Adrienne Gebele double brought home Lauren Gellerman for the first score, and a Raven King single plated Caitlin Colvin.
Ohio posted insurance runs in the fourth and fifth innings. In the fourth, Erin Lashley pushed a bunt to the left side of the infield, advancing Tessa Bailey to third. On a heads up play, Lashley dashed for second, inducing a throw to second that allowed Bailey to score, making the score 3-0.
In the fifth, Gellerman, Ohio’s all-time home run leader, cranked a long fly over the fence in left center field to give Ohio the 4-0 lead that would never really be in jeopardy.
Gellerman finished 2-for-3 with a single and the home run while scoring two of the Bobcats’ runs. Colvin went 1-for-2 on the day with a walk, a single, and a run scored.
The victory moved McClary to 6-3 on the year and put her E.R.A. at a team-best 4.01.
Game Two
The Bobcats completed the doubleheader sweep of Canisius, 7-6 on Saturday, behind the strength of their bats. Their offense was powered and led by the long ball as they blasted three homeruns.
In the third inning, Lauren Gellerman led off the slugfest with her 10th home run this season and 32nd of her Ohio softball career. In the very next at bat Caitlin Colvin blasted her 12th home run of the year.
To start off the fourth inning, Adrienne Gebele figured she would join the club as well, belting her fourth home run of the season.
The Bobcats jumped on starting pitcher Corinne Schaus early and often scoring at least once an inning for the first five innings. Schaus lasted 4.1 innings after allowing 4 earned runs on 7 hits. By the end of the fifth inning the Bobcats led 7-1.
Savannah Jo Dorsey started for Ohio and picked up her seventh win of the season. However, this win did not come easy for the Bobcats.
After giving up her only earned run in the first inning, Dorsey pitched three plus innings of shutout softball, including getting out of a bases loaded jam in the second.
The sixth inning brought some trouble for Dorsey and the Bobcats fielding.
A costly error on a dropped third strike allowed a runner to get on for Canisius. Then Bethany DeMarco stepped to the plate for the Golden Griffins and belted a two run homer of her own. That home run would be followed by three more Canisius hits, tacking on two more runs for the Griffins.
Dorsey was unable to finish the sixth inning and was replaced by Kaylin Clarke.
Clarke entered the top of the seventh with a 7-5 lead. She got herself into a little bit of trouble allowing consecutive doubles, as the Golden Griffiths drew within one run.
But Clarke got Katie Medina to groundout to third to end the game and seal the doubleheader sweep.
The Bobcats improve to 15-10 on the year and are looking to take the momentum into MAC play.
“It got the big five game monkey off our back” coach Jodi Hermanek said after the game. Ohio entered Saturday on a five-game losing streak.
Hermanek also said her team needs to stay loose and relaxed and keep the feeling Saturday’s two wins as it goes into MAC play.
The Bobcats head to Kent State to take on the Golden Flashes (9-11) in another doubleheader on Friday, March 29.