Sports
Ohio Softball: Bobcats off to strong start in 2019
By: Michael Roth
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ATHENS, Ohio — Coming off a MAC championship and a run in the NCAA tournament, expectations were high for the Ohio softball program under new coach Kenzie Roark.
The Bobcats opened up their season in the Phyllis Rafter Memorial in Kennesaw, Georgia. The Bobcats squared off with four different opponents in the five-game weekend.
To open up the season, the Bobcats won 9-8 over Eastern Illinois. MacKenzie Brunswick, Charlee Pond and Allie Englant led the Bobcats with two hits each. Madi McCrady got the win on the mound; She pitched 4.1 innings and gave up five earned runs. Mackenzie Kohl came in for the save and picked up her first of the season.
Eastern Illinois was killed by errors, as starting pitcher Jade Montgomery gave up nine total runs, but only four of them were earned.
In the Bobcats second game of the opening night, Ohio fell to Chattanooga 6-3. Caroline Spacek, Morgan Geno and Englant were the three Bobcats with multi-hit games. Geno had all three of the RBI’s for the Bobcats. Ohio gave up three unearned runs which proved to be the difference in the game.
Ohio bounced back on Saturday with a 6-1 victory over Morehead State. England led the Bobcats with three hits, while Pond scored two runs and Geno drove in two runs to lead the team. Six Bobcats starters had a hit in the game, and the Bobcats only struck out three times all game. Catcher Natalie Alvarez went 2-for-2 from behind the plate and had a walk in her three plate appearances Saturday afternoon. Kohl pitched a complete game one hitter, with the only hit she gave up all day being a solo home run from Allison Davis.
Ohio completed the sweep in the nightcap against host Kennesaw State with a 7-2 victory. McCrady pitched a complete game that allowed the bullpen to get some rest. Offensively the Bobcats had nine hits, with two coming from Taytum Hargrave, Geno, and Englant each. Englant and Hargrave each scored two runs to help pace the Bobcats offensive attack.
In the final game of the opening weekend, Eastern Illinois was given their chance at revenge against Ohio, but the Bobcats prevailed with a 4-1 win to end the first weekend of the season at 4-1. Katie Yun, Englant, Geno, and Alex Day all had two hits for the Bobcats offense. Ohio had a very balanced offensive effort scoring wise, with eight different players involved in the four runs scored. A different player scored and drove in each run for the Bobcats. Kohl got her second complete game win, this time limiting her opponents to six hits and advancing to 2-0 from the mound this season.
Ohio (4-1) will look to keep their hot start when they travel to Columbia, South Carolina for the Gamecock invitational where they will face South Carolina, UNC Greensboro, Campbell, and Charlotte.