Ladines Hurls Third Shutout as Softball Splits Pair on Day 2 of Red & Black Classic

Saturday, February 27

Louisville, Ky.

11:00 a.m.

Kent State University

11-1

Cleveland State University

4-7

Kent State

Cleveland State

Photo by: Dave Warren

Ladines Hurls Third Shutout as Softball Splits Pair on Day 2 of Red & Black Classic

2/27/2016 9:40:00 PM | Softball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2

Game 1 Game 2

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – It was the tale of two games, as Kent State blanked Cleveland State, 4-0, in its first game of the day and then lost, 11-0, to North Dakota State in the nightcap on Saturday at the Red & Black Classic at the University of Louisville's Ulmer Stadium.

"We earned a nice win this morning," said interim head coach Eric Oakley. "It's always important to beat a regional rival. Ronnie Ladines pitched well and we had success at the plate with two outs. In the night game, North Dakota State came out quick and we didn't respond. We will use this game as a learning experience to get better for tomorrow."

The Golden Flashes (11-2) collected 13 hits to 12 by their opponents despite being outscored, 11-4, on the day. Sophomore Holly Speers went 4-for-6 to lead the way. Arika Roush and Ronnie Ladines added two hits each. Eight of the 17 players who stepped to the plate had at least one hit.

Game 1: Kent State 4, Cleveland State 0
Ronnie Ladines returned to her dominant ways and held Cleveland State to just two hits for her third shutout of the young season. Ladines, who improved to 7-0, finished with seven strikeouts and five walks. She did not allow a hit until a double to lead off the bottom of the sixth inning broke up her no-hit bid.

While Kent State has been accustomed to big innings this season, the Flashes scored once in four innings against the Vikings. All four runs were scored with two outs.

Ladines sparked the offense with a double in the top of the second, and Erika Warren followed with a single to bring her home and make it a 1-0 game.

The next inning, the Flashes took advantage of an error that allowed Arika Roush to reach safely and advance to second, as she scored on a double off the bat of Holly Speers.

A pair of singles and double by Shelbi Tilton plated another run in the fifth.

Maddy Grimm just missed her third home run of the weekend with a shot off the top of the wall in the seventh, and sped around the bases for a triple. Speers followed with her second double of the game to score the final run.

Game 2: North Dakota State 11, Kent State 0 (5 innings)
Two bunt singles and two doubles gave North Dakota State a 3-0 lead after sending just four batters to the plate. The Bison added one more run and led 4-0 after the first inning.

A Kent State error led to seven unearned runs for NDSU in the second inning. The Bison needed just four hits in the inning, highlighted by a grand slam off the bat of Maritza Lopez-Portillo, which brought in the final runs of the game.

Sydney Anderson, Holly Speers, and Vanessa Scoarste each had a single for the Flashes. Arika Roush was hit by a pitch twice and had a stolen base.

Janel Hayes (3-2) allowed four earned runs, seven hits and one walk to go with one strikeout in 1.2 innings in the circle. Emily Dobbin entered in the second and pitched the final 2.1 innings for Kent State. Dobbin allowed three unearned runs on three hits and had two strikeouts with three walks.

On Deck for the Flashes
Kent State concludes play at the Red & Black Classic on Sunday with games against North Dakota State and Louisville. First pitch is scheduled for 12:30 p.m. and both games can be heard on the Golden Flashes Radio iHeart Radio station.