Offensive Showdown Between Akron And Western Michigan Falls In Favor Of Broncos

Friday, March 29

Akron, Ohio

1:00 PM

University of Akron

6-17-2, 0

Western Michigan

8-12, 0

Western Michigan

Akron

Photo by: Jeff Harwell

Offensive Showdown Between Akron And Western Michigan Falls In Favor Of Broncos

March 29 | Softball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2

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Game One: Box Score | Box Score (PDF)
Game Two: Box Score | Box Score (PDF)
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AKRON, Ohio– In an offensive showdown between the Akron softball team and Western Michigan that saw a nine-inning game, a game that was decided in the seventh inning, and 35 total runs between two games, the Zips fell twice to the visiting Broncos in Mid-American Conference action on Friday afternoon.

Following the 2019 home opener at Lee R. Jackson Field on the campus of the University of Akron, the Zips stand 6-18-2 and 0-5 in league play while WMU now sits 9-13 and 2-0 in MAC play.

In game one, Akron led for five innings before a go-ahead two-run home run by Western Michigan handed the Broncos the eventual 4-3 victory.

UA posted five hits in the ballgame all from five different players, including redshirt senior Kimberly Rodriguez (Las Vegas, Nev.), senior Laura Lakins (Akron, Ohio), junior Macky Mitchiner (Riverside, Calif.), junior Jessie Holzman (Medina, Ohio), and senior Maddy Clowdus (Eastvale, Calif.).

Inside the circle for Akron, junior Adrian Smith (St. Clairsville, Ohio) tossed her fourth complete game of the season, a team-best. I seven innings of work, Smith allowed 10 hits, gave up four runs, three of which were earned, and struck out a game-high five batters. Heading into the seventh inning, Smith had given up just six hits and only one run before the Broncos found an offensive rhythm.

The Zips got the scoring going in the second inning to jump out to a 2-0 lead over WMU. With a runner on second and one out, senior Laura Lakins ripped an RBI double into the left-field corner scoring the runner from second. Junior Madison Carter (Newnan, Ga.) pinch ran for Carter, advanced to third on a ground out off the bat of Mitchiner, and scored when Holzman sent a ground ball through the left side of the infield for an RBI single.

WMU immediately responded with one run in the ensuing half inning when the Broncos successfully ran a double steal play with runners on the corners that allowed Logan Carter to slide home safely.

Akron extended its lead back to +2 in the in the fifth inning. Clowdus entered the game as a pinch hitter for freshman Camryn Michallas (Huntington, W. Va.) with Mitchiner on second base. Following a stolen base by Mitchiner, Clowdus poked a single up the middle driving in her teammate.

UA headed into the seventh inning with a two-run lead, but a three-run seventh inning for Western Michigan, including the go-ahead three-run home run, handed WMU the eventual victory.

Game two between the Zips and Broncos as an offensive showdown at Lee Jackson Field. The two squads combined recorded 36 hits, 22 to WMU and 14 to UA, while a combined 38 runs were scored.

After the Broncos opened the second match-up with a run in the top of the inning, Akron bounced back with one of their own. Sophomore Kayla Wulf (Maumee, Ohio) drove in redshirt sophomore Sydney Jascoe (Commerce, Mich.) from third base.

From that point on, the next three innings belonged to Western Michigan as the Broncos hung eight runs on the scoreboard, including six in the second, one in the third, and one in the fourth, to claim a 9-1 advantage.

With the Zips window closing, the Zips offense flipped a switch, began its late-game comeback, and scored eight unanswered runs, three in the fifth and five in the sixth.

Rodriguez hit a one-out RBI double to left field to score freshman Morgan Cadmus (Tecumseh, Mich.) to begin the Zips rally. With Rodriguez now standing on second base, Wulf launched a towering home run to left field that clanked off the foul pole and cut into the Broncos lead, 9-4.

The Zips offense continued to roll in the following inning beginning with a leadoff solo home run off the bat of junior Samantha Malik (Orlando, Fla.), her third of the season.

After a double to left field by senior Jordan Crews (Waco, Ga.), the right fielder moved to third on a groundout and crossed home plate on an RBI single through the left side of the infield by Holzman.

Two at-bats later, Michallas and Holzman took off on the basepath on a double steal. After both sliding in safely, a bad throw by the Broncos catcher allowed them both to move up one additional base, which included Holzman darting across home plate.

Back-to-back hits off the bats off Rodriguez (RBI double to right field) and Wulf (RBI single down the right-field line) tied the ball game up at nine runs apiece.

WMU bounced back in the top half of the seventh to score the go-ahead run, 10-9.

As Akron headed into what could have been its final at-bats of the game, the Zips continued to swing the hot bat. After UA's first two runners reached safely, Malik and Crews stole second and third to put two runners in scoring position. Mitchiner ripped an RBI single back up the middle to tie the game up at 10, keep Akron's hopes alive and push the game into extra innings.

Despite the Zips offensive onslaught in the final three innings of regulation, Western Michigan broke open the game in the top of the ninth with eight runs en route to its 18-10 victory.

Five players in the Akron lineup tallied a multi-hit performance in game two including, Wulf, Jascoe, Rodriguez, Crews and Mitchiner. The Zips top performer of the contest was Wulf who went 3-for-5 with three RBI and a run scored.

As a unit, five players recorded an extra-base hit, eight notched a stolen base, and two tallied a sacrifice hit.

Akron and Western Michigan are tentatively scheduled to close out the three-game Mid-American Conference series tomorrow, Saturday, March 30, at 12 p.m. The game has been moved up one hour from its originally scheduled 1 p.m. first pitch time due to inclement weather in the Akron area.

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Team Stats

Pitching:

W: GALLOWAY (2-5)

L: Vertz, Kooper (0-2)

Western Michigan

Batting:

2B: STEFANICK 1 ; GALLOWAY 1 ; SOBESKI 1

HR: STEFANICK 1 ; GLENFIELD 1 ; BARG 1

RBI: SWINEHART 1 ; FAULTERSACK 1 ; STEFANICK 3 ; GLENFIELD 3 ; GALLOWAY 2 ; WYMAN 2 ; SOBESKI 2 ; BARG 4

SH: GALLOWAY 1 ; SOBESKI 1

SF: STEFANICK 1 ; WYMAN 1

Base Running:

RUNS: SWINEHART 2 ; FAULTERSACK 2 ; STEFANICK 3 ; GLENFIELD 3 ; GALLOWAY 1 ; CARTER 2 ; WYMAN 2 ; SOBESKI 1 ; BARG 2

Akron

Batting:

2B: Rodriguez, Kimberly 2 ; Crews, Jordan 1 ; Holzman, Jessie 1

HR: Wulf, Kayla 1 ; Malik, Samantha 1

RBI: Rodriguez, Kimberly 2 ; Wulf, Kayla 3 ; Malik, Samantha 1 ; Mitchiner, Macky 1 ; Holzman, Jessie 1

SH: Rodriguez, Kimberly 1 ; Holdsworth, Lauren 1

Base Running:

RUNS: Jascoe, Sydney 1 ; Rodriguez, Kimberly 2 ; Wulf, Kayla 1 ; Malik, Samantha 1 ; Carter, Madison 1 ; Crews, Jordan 1 ; Holzman, Jessie 1 ; Cadmus, Morgan 1 ; Michallas, Camryn 1

SB: Rodriguez, Kimberly 1 ; Wulf, Kayla 1 ; Carter, Madison 1 ; Crews, Jordan 1 ; Mitchiner, Macky 1 ; Holzman, Jessie 1 ; Cadmus, Morgan 1 ; Michallas, Camryn 1