The Kent State softball team lost all three games against the University of Akron this week. Its all-time record against Akron is 27-15. Akron is now on a six-game winning streak and in first place in the Mid-American Conference while KSU sits at eighth.
In this series KSU struggled to produce offense, and when they did the Flashes were either thrown out or left stranded.
Tuesday
In the first game, the Flashes lost 13-5 against the Zips.
Akron scored 10 runs before KSU recorded a single hit, and the Flashes didn’t score until the bottom of the fifth. The small rally started when sophomore second baseman Brynn Libler hit a single to right center with the bases loaded, allowing sophomore left fielder Brooke Aberle and freshman shortstop Alex Trevena to score. KSU brought in another run when junior center fielder Aralyn Nogay scored when Libler was caught stealing.
The Flashes didn’t score again until the bottom of the seventh, and both runs came from errors.
Liber went 2-for-4 with two RBI, and Nogay went 2-for-3.
Wednesday
After the Zips opened the scoring at the top of the first with three runs, KSU responded with one thanks to junior first baseman Megan Claerhout’s ground out which allowed Liber to score after getting on with a walk. The Flashes’ only other run was scored in the bottom of the fourth.
With two runners on, Trevena smacked a hard hit single to right field which scored junior right fielder Ashlyn Porter.
KSU lost the first game of Wednesday’s doubleheader 4-2. Porter went 2-for-2, and Nogay went 2-for-3.
In game two, the scoring started steadily for both teams in the first few innings, with the Flashes trailing 6-4 by the bottom of the third. However, when the Zips ramped up their offense, the Flashes couldn’t keep up and ended up losing 20-6.
Stand-out offensive performances came from Libler, Nogay and Claerhout who each had three hits. Nogay had three RBI, Claerhout had two and Libler had one.
“Knowing that when you step in that box, it doesn’t matter what she’s throwing, we can hit anything,” coach Jessica O’Donnell said. “It’s just having that little bit of confidence and knowing that ‘hey, the work that we put in is gonna pay off.”’
Key Stats
Porter leads the Flashes in batting average at .365, continuing what’s been a great year at the plate. Freshman catcher Caleigh Shaulis leads in on-base plus slugging with an average of 1.004.
Leading in RBI is Shaulis with 33; below her is Libler with 21. Shaulis has hit the most home runs with nine, and Nogay has the most hits with 39.
On KSU’s pitching staff, freshman Riley Miller has the most strikeouts with 43 and the lowest ERA at 4.95. Freshman Meadow Ferri was named MAC Pitcher of the Week for her work against Bowling Green. She has an ERA of 6.14, and this is her first career MAC award.
“We’re proud of her,” O’Donnell said. “She pitched really well, and we’re in a position now where we still kind of control our destiny, and we wouldn’t be able to do that if she hadn’t pitched well against Bowling Green.”
What’s Next
The Flashes face their next conference opponent, the Northern Illinois University Huskies, on Saturday in DeKalb, Ill.
“We really need to be smart,” O’Donnell said. “We need to communicate, try our best to get lead runners when we can and just be super aggressive.”
Audrey McCarthy is a reporter. Contact her at [email protected].