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Ohio Softball team celebrating Belle Hummel’s home run in the MAC Tournament [Lindsey Crawford | WOUB Public Media]

Bobcats sends Huskies packing in high scoring contest

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AKRON, Ohio (WOUB) – Back for day three of the MAC Tournament, the Ohio Bobcats returned to Firestone Field, looking to face No. 2 seed Northern Illinois. With Akron taking a dramatic win over Western Michigan the game before, the winner of this contest would advance to the semi-finals to take on the Broncos. In the end, the Bobcats would run away with the win, 15-5. 

Out of the gate, Ohio’s Belle Hummel would show out with a homer. Next at the plate, Colleen Bare would nearly send one over the fence herself, falling just short with a double to center field. An Izzy Wilson triple would cap off the top of the inning, sending Bare back home for the Bobcats’ second run of the game.

In the bottom of the first, NIU would add two runs of their own to tie the game up. With two outs and storm clouds ahead, the game would come to a halt for nearly an hour. However, back from the break, Ohio’s Skipp Miller would quickly end the inning. 

In the second inning, the Huskies would take their first and only lead of the game. Four walks and a single would allow Northern Illinois to send both Mia Morera and Lia Nance across home plate. From there, Miller would head back to the dugout and Keegan Moore would close out the inning with two straight outs. 

In the fourth, Rylee McDaniel would get things moving again for the Bobcats with a double through the left side. With two outs on the board, a Hummel double would end the scoring drought and bring the Bobcats within one run. In the bottom, Moore would make quick work of the Huskies with a 1-2-3 inning. 

Ohio Softball outfielder, Izzie Wilson laughs with head coach Jenna Hall
Ohio Softball outfielder, Izzie Wilson laughs with head coach Jenna Hall [Lindsey Crawford | WOUB Public Media]
Sydney Young would go on a redemption tour in the fifth after being hit by a pitch during a controversial call in the third. Flying out well beyond the fence, Young would bring home herself and Wilson to take the reins 5-4, a lead Ohio would hold for the rest of the game. 

The top of the sixth would prove big for the Bobcats, including two runs courtesy of a Bare bomb and another from a Shelby Westler RBI double. In the bottom, the Huskies would score their final run of the game, as a Danielle Stewart single up the middle would knock in a run.

Unfortunately for the Huskies, the top of the seventh would bring nothing but runs, as Ohio would tally seven. Another Young homerun would kick off the scoring nightmare for Ohio, followed by an Abby Kenelly triple to left-center field for two RBIs.

During the next at-bat, Belle Hummel would ground out but allowed Kennelly to cross home herself. Following two singles from Bare and Brenna Farmer, Wilson would step up to the plate with confidence, flying out over the left-center fence to bring in three more runs. 

In the bottom of the seventh, Miller would be back on the mound for the Bobcats, closing out the game, 15-5. With NIU leaving the MAC, the Bobcats would send the Huskies back to DeKalb for the final time in conference play. 

With this win, Ohio advances to the semi-finals, where they will face Western Michigan on May 9 at 11 a.m. The winner of that match-up will get to take their second shot at Akron later in the day in the MAC Championship game.