Ohio made strides to snap its recent skid with a little help from sophomore pitcher Savannah Jo Dorsey in its home opener against Wright State on Friday.
The Bobcats breezed past the Raiders 3-1 with impressive performances in the circle and at the plate from Dorsey, who struck out 10 batters and hit a two-run home run.
“She just needed to find her groove and stick with it,” coach Jodi Hermanek said. “She had her moments today; 10 (strikeouts) is a good outing, but she worked through some adversity and I’m proud to see her do that.”
After beginning the game with four consecutive strikeouts, Dorsey gradually backed into corners at times, including multiple situations where the Raiders had runners in scoring position but stranded.
Throughout the high-intensity situations, Dorsey appeared relaxed — she even cracked a smile as she picked up a full count and walked a Raider to load the bases in the top of the fourth inning.
“I love it,” Dorsey said. “With situations, the most important thing is to stay loose and smile and have fun because I know we’re going to get out of it. I have all the confidence in the world. It’s good being back on our field and everything is fun right now.“
Sophomore second baseman Alexia Cortez added a home run in the top of the third inning to account for Ohio’s third and final run of the day. The Bobcats are 4-0 when they homer at least two times.
Despite having an 8-6 record in games decided by two runs or less, Ohio has struggled lately and has found itself on the wrong end of games changed by one or two pitches. After the Bobcats jumped out to their best start in program history, winning 12 of the first 13 games, they went on to drop 10 of their next 11 contests before winning on Friday.
“We started out with a really challenging schedule getting out in February and the beginning of March,” Hermanek said. “I thought it was a very good schedule for us, playing a lot of teams that bring a lot of postseason and regional experience. I’m not hanging my head too low on the spring break outcomes.”
Granted, the team often lost close games against superior competition, including a matchup with No. 16 South Alabama, but consistently found themselves re-evaluating a pitch or two that could have altered the outcome of the contest.
Hermanek said Friday’s win was the first game of what she calls the “second half of the season,” as the team will not travel for any more tournaments.
“It’s been a long road…so we were excited to be able to be on our own field this week,” Hermanek said. “We wanted an opportunity to come out in front of our home fans and start the second phase of our season on the right foot with a win.”
Ohio will play a doubleheader at Dayton on Thursday before it starts Mid-American Conference play on March 28.
Fast Facts
Ohio 3 (14-12)
Wright State 1 (2-16)
Friday marked the Bobcats’ home opener.
Savannah Jo Dorsey won her 11th game of the season and struck out 10 batters.
@Charliehatch_
gh181212@ohiou.edu
