Sports
Ohio Softball’s Offense Sluggish Against Marshall
By: Brad Friedman, Kaleb Carter
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Ohio Softball fell to Marshall twice Wednesday, as Thundering Herd senior Andi Williamson pitched 13 innings of two-hit, no-run softball. The loss pushed Ohio's losing streak to nine games.
Game One
The first game of the doubleheader wasn’t an encouraging sign for the Bobcats’ offense that has been struggling lately. A 4-0 loss at the hands of the Marshall Thundering Herd was due to an impressive performance from Williamson, as she struck out several Ohio hitters.
The Bobcats couldn’t put the ball on the bat consistently and struck out 16 times over the course of the ball game. Williamson pitched the whole way for Marshall, allowing two hits and walking one. She currently leads the NCAA with 300 strikeouts and set her own personal record for wins in a season with 26 (26-13).
Lauren Gellerman was the only Bobcat with a hit in the game, with two. Dakota Pyles reached on a walk in the second.
The only other runner for the Bobcats was on an Amanda Dalton ground ball down the third base line that Marshall third baseman Jazmine Valle threw past the first baseman for an error. The ball took an awkward bounce and went all the way to the right field corner, and Dalton ended up on third. The next three Bobcats, Tessa Bailey, Gellerman, and Adrienne Gebele got out, leaving Dalton stranded on third. This was Ohio’s best chance to score on the day.
Lauren McClary pitched the whole game for the Bobcats, going seven strong, allowing six hits, four earned runs, two walks, and struck out seven Herd batters.
Game Two
In a game that featured no runs in the final five innings, the Marshall Thundering Herd snuck past Ohio, 3-2.
From the start, it seemed as if the game would be a high scoring affair. Ohio sophomore Adrienne Gebele blasted a two-run homerun over the right field fence during the bottom of the first.
Starting pitcher Halie Vance was pulled after the home run in favor of Brittanie Fowler, but game one starter Andi Williamson took over pitching duties to start the second inning.
During top of the second, Marshall loaded the bases and senior Ashley Glue knocked in an RBI single, slashing Ohio’s lead to 2-1.
With the bases still loaded, freshman pitcher Savannah Jo Dorsey threw a wild pitch over the head of Gebele, scoring freshman Bri Anna Hope. While attempting to tag Hope out, Dorsey let the ball get away from her, allowing Kaelynn Greene to rush for another run and putting the Thundering Herd up, 3-2.
From that point on, both pitchers took control of the game.
Dorsey finished the game with 11 strikeouts — a career high — and six walks. She managed to pitch out of a few jams, including forcing three straight outs to strand a Marshall runner on third during the top of the sixth.
Despite a rough second inning, head coach Jodi Hermanek applauded Dorsey’s resilience for the rest of the game. However, she expects more out of her pitching staff in the future.
“We need to make sure we come out attacking batters tomorrow and that we trust ourselves to finish a complete seven innings,” Hermanek said.
On the other side, Williamson showed no sign of fatigue after pitching in the first game. The senior recorded twelve strikeouts during the second game, boosting her NCAA leading strikeout total to 300.
Hermanek admitted that Williamson had her team’s number.
“She’s a good pitcher, and that is what the game is about,” Hermanek said.
“If we come at her another day … she had our number today, but maybe not tomorrow,” Gebele added.
The Bobcats look to pick up a win during their current 10-game home stand when they take on Wright State in a doubleheader tomorrow at 3 p.m.