OXFORD, Ohio—With a pair of wins on Saturday afternoon to complete a four-game weekend sweep against Kent State University, the Miami University softball team reached 40 wins for just the second time in program history. The RedHawks notched a 3-1 win in the opener, and finished the day with a 6-4 win against the Golden Flashes to improve to 40-8 on the season and 30-2 in Mid-American Conference action. KSU fell to 22-25 overall and 18-15 in MAC play.
Prior to the first game, Miami honored its four graduating seniors:
Jada Dotson,
Morgan Lott,
Taylor Rathe and
Mackenzie Moore.
GAME ONE:
Miami jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning when junior
Riley Coyne tagged a two-RBI double to center field to plate junior
Allie Cummins and freshman
Karlee Juarez.
KSU scored in the top of the second to cut the RedHawk lead to 2-1. Miami added a run in the bottom of the fifth inning when freshman
Holly Blaska belted a home run to lead off the inning and lift Miami to a 3-1 advantage, which would be the final margin.
Junior
Adriana Barlow was the lone RedHawk with a multi-hit game, going 2-for-3 from the plate. Senior
Courtney Vierstra picked up her 23rd win of the season, throwing 7.0 innings and giving up just one run and four hits while walking one and striking out nine.
GAME TWO:
Miami scored two runs in the first, third and fourth innings to open up a 6-0 lead. Cummins and Coyne each hit RBI singles in the first inning to put Miami up 2-0.
In the third inning, senior
Lily Wilmot belted a two-run home run over the center field fence to extend the Miami lead to 4-0. Blaska and Cummins each drilled solo home runs in the fourth inning to push the RedHawk lead to 6-0.
Kent State scored four runs in the top of the sixth to close within 6-4, but that would be as close as they would get as Miami claimed the win.
Coyne and Juarez each went 2-for-3 at the plate with a run in the second game, while Coyne also had an RBI. Cummins was 2-for-4 with a run and two RBI. Junior
Brianna Pratt picked up the win in the circle, pitching 5.0 innings, while Vierstra came in to pick up the save with 2.0 innings of relief work.
UP NEXT:
Miami hosts Ohio University in a Battle of the Bricks doubleheader on Wednesday, May 12 at 2 p.m. in the final regular-season home games for the RedHawks.
