Ohio traveled to Huntington, West Virginia, for a single game against Marshall on Wednesday. Ohio battled throughout the game, however, it did not come out victorious. Marshall won 6-4.
The Bobcats had a tough time keeping up with the Thundering Herd as they were unable to claim the lead at any point in the ballgame. The Bobcats faced two of Marshall’s best pitchers: Savannah Rice and Sydney Nester.
Ohio’s hitting was inconsistent. Ohio only had one multi-hit inning and struck out eight times. It had six hits as a team and did not leave its pitchers a lot of wiggle room.
The Bobcats' starter was Skipp Miller. Miller pitched all six innings for the Bobcats and allowed nine hits and struck out two. Miller gave up six earned runs and picked up the loss.
Marshall’s starter, Savannah Rice, put together a strong performance. She tossed four and one-thirds innings, allowed two hits, walked three batters, struck out five and allowed three runs.
Rice was relieved by Bri Godfrey, who only threw one-third of an inning. Godfrey allowed another run before she was pulled while the bases were loaded with two outs.
Marshall wanted to protect the lead with the bases loaded, so it leaned into Nester. Nester’s performance was rocky at first, though. She walked the first batter who later tied the game but immediately followed up with an inning-ending strikeout to keep the game at 4-4.
Marshall’s hitting was up to par with how it has performed all year. Marshall has the seventh-best batting average in the nation. Bub Feringa went 1-for-3 with two RBIs and Rielly Lucas went 2-for-3 with two RBIs on a two-run home run to right field.
Alex Coleman was the core of the Thundering Herd’s offense. Coleman dominated the field. She went 3-for-3, stole three bases and scored three runs for a perfect performance.
The biggest play of the game came at the bottom of the fifth. Grace Chelemen hit a fly ball toward Ohio left fielder Belle Hummel that was just out of her reach. Feringa and Colemen ran home and Chelemen made it all the way to third.
Ohio’s Austy Miller grounded out in the top of the seventh to end the ball game. Sydney Nester was credited as the winning pitcher, improving her record to 11-2 for the season. Nester allowed one hit, threw two strikeouts and didn’t allow a run.
