Ladines Shines as Flashes Take Two on Opening Day

Friday, February 12

Fort Myers, Fla.

9:00 a.m.

Kent State University

1-0

University of Illinois - Chicago

0-1

Kent State

Illinois-Chicago

Photo by: Dave Warren

Ladines Shines as Flashes Take Two on Opening Day

2/12/2016 7:22:00 PM | Softball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2

Game 1 Game 2

FORT MYERS, Fla. – The Kent State softball team showed it can win games in different ways on a 2-0 opening day at the FGCU Kickoff Classic on Friday. The Golden Flashes put together all phases of the game for a 10-0 five-inning victory over Illinois-Chicago and then needed a seventh-inning comeback to beat Memphis, 4-3.

"It's always nice to start the season with two wins," said interim head coach Eric Oakley. "I feel like we showed up in all aspects of the game on the first day, and that is an encouraging sign. To have a strong offensive output plus a comeback win on the same day is a nice way to start the season."

Junior Ronnie Ladines made a huge impact both with her arm and her stick. Ladines was the winning pitcher in both games and allowed just one hit in six scoreless innings. Her 2-for-4 performance at the plate included the walk-off single to beat Memphis.

"It's hard to have a better day than Ronnie did for us today," Oakley said. "She threw like the ace that we are counting on her to be and swung the bat like we know she is capable."

Ten Flashes combined for 19 hits. Freshman Bailey Brownfield led the way, going 5-for-6 with two RBIs. Senior Arika Roush had three hits and freshman Jen Cader and sophomore Holly Speers joined Ladines with two hits each.

"Increasing our run production has been a big emphasis entering the season, so it was great to put up 10 runs in our first game," said Oakley. "We were hitting the ball with confidence and got hit contributions from several players. It was great to see two of our freshmen in Bailey Brownfield and Jen Cader provide timely hits in our comeback against Memphis."