Kent State University
Central Michigan
Kent State Softball Hosts CMU for Senior Weekend
4/29/2021 5:12:00 PM | Softball
The Kent State softball program will celebrate the 10 student-athletes who comprise the 2020 and 2021 senior classes this weekend when Central Michigan visits the Diamond at Dix.
First pitch of the four-game Mid-American Conference series is scheduled for 3 p.m. on Friday. The teams will play a doubleheader on Saturday, beginning at 1 p.m., with the finale slated for 12 p.m. on Sunday. The Golden Flashes will honor their 2020 seniors following Saturday's doubleheader, while the 2021 senior class will be recognized after Sunday's contest.
Follow the Action
The entire series will be streamed on BoxCast, with individual games links available on Kent State's schedule page. Game updates will also be posted on the @KentStSoftball Twitter account.
Last Time Out
Kent State (16-21, 12-11 MAC) dropped a pair of games to Buffalo, 4-2 and 7-2, on Wednesday. The Bulls slugged six home runs to take the season series, 3-1.
Brooklyn Whitt led the Golden Flashes with three hits and extended her reached-base streak to 24 games. Emily Lippe, Alexis Taube and Kennadie Goth each collected a pair of hits in the doubleheader. Lippe delivered an RBI single in both games.
Jessica LeBeau went the distance in the opening game, striking out 10 batters and allowing four runs on six hits.
About the Flashes
Kent State has won four of its last five games and sits third in the MAC standings. The Golden Flashes rank fourth in the conference with a .288 team batting average and seventh in runs per game (4.41).
The outfield trio of junior Brooklyn Whitt, senior Kennadie Goth and senior Alexis Taube are the Flashes' top hitters on the season. Whitt has established herself as the starter in center field is sixth in the MAC in batting average (.409), fifth in hits (45) and seventh in on-base percentage (.488). She leads Kent State with 24 runs scored, eight doubles and seven stolen bases. Goth's career-best .404 batting average ranks sixth in the MAC and is second on the team with 42 hits. Taube has a career-best .367 batting average and leads the Flashes with a .571 slugging percentage to go with five home runs and 28 RBIs. Junior Megan Turner is the team leader with six home runs and 28 RBIs.
Freshman Jessica LeBeau (10-10) has been the Flashes' top pitcher with 14 complete games, including four shutouts. LeBeau ranks third in the MAC in strikeouts per seven innings (8.84), total strikeouts (157) and wins (10) while ranking fifth in ERA (2.82). Sophomore Gabbie Sherman (5-9) has been stellar in her past five appearances, allowing just two earned runs over 30.1 innings for a 1.38 ERA. Sherman has recorded 22 strikeouts and walked six batters during these outings.
Scouting Central Michigan
The Chippewas (11-21, 9-13 MAC) are one of the hottest teams in the conference and have won six of their last eight games after taking both games of a doubleheader from Western Michigan on Wednesday. Central Michigan averages 4.47 runs per game and is last in the MAC with a 6.81 team earned run average.
Shannon Stein has reached base in 16 consecutive games and leads the Chippewas with five home runs and 25 RBIs. Shaidan Knapp's .500 on-base percentage ranks fifth in the conference, and the senior leads CMU with a .360 batting average, 22 runs scored and four stolen bases. Abbey Tolmie is batting .340 and has a team-high eight doubles. Grace Lehto (7-9) has been UB's top pitcher this season with 78 strikeouts and a 6.76 ERA over 87.0 innings.
Series History
Kent State is 44-50 all-time against Central Michigan and has won the past two matchups. Most recently, Andrea Scali tossed a one-hitter as the Golden Flashes earned a 3-0 victory to eliminate the Chippewas from the 2019 MAC Tournament. Kent State last hosted CMU at the Diamon at Dix in 2016, sweeping a three-game series to open the conference schedule by a total score of 20-3.
On Deck for the Flashes
Kent State will play six games on the road next week, beginning with a doubleheader at Akron on Tuesday, May 4 before heading to first-place Miami for a four-game weekend series.
