The Kent State softball team went 1-2 over the weekend against Western Michigan.

“I felt that we put ourselves in a position where we could have taken at least two or three, but unfortunately, we didn’t finish the job, which has been the routine with a lot of our MAC conference games,” coach Jessica O’Donnell said. 

KSU lost 10-5  in the first game of the day on Saturday.

“We have to eliminate the amount of hits that we’re giving up,” O’Donnell said. “That really shuts the team down and puts us on the defense, having to crawl our way back.”

Redshirt sophomore starting pitcher Kendal Leitner hit a double to left center that scored the first run by junior utility player Brynn Libler. 

“Brynn Libler had a really great weekend,” O’Donnell said. “She had a 14-game hit streak, and obviously she was player of the week last week. So offensively, she’s doing a really nice job.”

Western Michigan (13-34, 7-15) had two home runs in the bottom of the first.

Kent State scored on a passed ball and an RBI single by sophomore infielder Megan Claerhout in the top of the fourth.

The Broncos had three runs in the bottom of the fifth for the final runs of the game. 

“I think we really need to do a better job of getting the ball off the plate and continuing to spin our pitches,” O’Donnell said.

The Flashes dominated Western Michigan 11-1 in game two. 

“It was a really great game across the board, and defensively, I thought we played pretty well,” O’Donnell said.

Leitner held WMU’s offense at bay for six innings. 

“I thought Kendall Leitner pitched and hit really well this weekend,” O’Donnell said. “I was really impressed with her.”

KSU had seven runs in the top of the seventh.

“We kept scoring throughout the game and took advantage of our opportunities when we had runners on,” O’Donnell said. “I feel like everybody was contributing in some capacity, and we were just playing really well together again.”

The Flashes lost 7-6  in the last game of the weekend. 

Leitner recorded a career-high of six RBIs.

Western Michigan scored a three-run homerun in the bottom of the first.

Leitner scored KSU’s first grand slam of the season in the top of the fourth.

Up next 

The Flashes will battle Toledo and Akron in the final week of the season. 

“Toledo has had some really high-scoring games, so they’re going to hit,” O’Donnell said.

Toledo is 17-26 overall, and 10-12 in the Mid-American Conference.

“We need to continue to score throughout the game and not just sit on a few runs here and there because that’s where teams feel like they can come back at us,” O’Donnell said. 

Emily Lowen is a reporter. Contact her at [email protected].