Softball Completes Sweep of Bowling Green in 2-1 Nine-Inning Thriller

Sunday, May 1

Bowling Green, Ohio

1:00 p.m.

Kent State University

32-18, 14-6

Bowling Green

18-33, 6-14

Kent State

Bowling Green

Photo by: Dave Warren

Softball Completes Sweep of Bowling Green in 2-1 Nine-Inning Thriller

5/1/2016 4:04:00 PM | Softball

Box Score

Box Score (pdf)

BOWLING GREEN, Ohio – Sophomore Emily Dobbin brought in the go-ahead run in the top of the ninth inning and junior Ronnie Ladines pitched six shutout innings to give Kent State a 2-1 victory and complete a weekend sweep of host Bowling Green on Sunday afternoon.

The game resumed with the Golden Flashes (32-18, 14-6 MAC) and Falcons tied 1-1 after umpires halted play prior to the start of the bottom of the fourth inning on Saturday.

"Stellar pitching and defense kept us in this game until we could push across the run we needed," said interim head coach Eric Oakley. "We moved [Emily] Dobbin into the two-hole yesterday, and she came up big with both of our RBIs in the game."

Kent State left six runners on base on Sunday and had a runner thrown out at the plate, but Ladines allowed just two baserunners, and more importantly, kept the Falcons off the scoreboard frame after frame to provide the offense with opportunities to push a run across the plate.

After having the go-ahead run cut down at the plate in the fifth inning, the Flashes failed to score after placing runners on second and third in both the sixth and seventh. A 1-2-3 eighth followed.

The ninth started with a groundout and a walk drawn by freshman Hunter Brancifort. Senior Arika Roush provided the Flashes with their third extra-base hit of the game, a double to right-center, but Brancifort was stopped at third base. A grounder to the right side on the first pitch to Dobbin allowed Brancifort to sprint home and give Kent State a 2-1 lead.

On Saturday, Dobbin put the Flashes on the board with a two-out double in the top of the third inning.

A pair of singles and a wild pitch allowed the Falcons to tie the game in their half of the frame.

Kent State outhit BG, 7-4. Freshman Bailey Brownfield led the way with two hits. Roush reached base three times on a hit and two walks. Dobbin had a career-high two RBIs.

Ladines (19-7) moved to the circle from the designated player position when play resumed on Sunday. She recorded three strikeouts in six innings while concluding a weekend in which she did not allow a run in 16 innings of work. Junior Janel Hayes started the game and threw all three innings on Saturday. Hayes had two strikeouts and allowed one run on two hits and two walks.

Kent State concludes the non-conference schedule with a doubleheader at #25/RV Ohio State on Wednesday. First pitch from Buckeye Field is scheduled for 4 p.m.