Ohio (26-12, 9-4 Mid-American Conference) lost both games of a Saturday doubleheader to Toledo (12-23, 5-9 MAC). Toledo firmly limited Ohio with wins of 8-4 and 4-0.
After a close win Friday, both games seemed to be toss-ups for either team, especially the first. A factor that was big in Ohio’s losses was the offense. Ohio failed to get on the scoreboard first, which it has usually excelled at this season. The offense also didn’t score until the bottom of the sixth inning in the first game.
“As coaches, we have to better prepare them and get them in a good place where they can get the pitch that they want,“ Ohio coach Jenna Hall said. "Toledo made great defensive plays all day. We left a lot of people on bases."
The highlight of the first game for Ohio was the eighth inning, which was a shootout between both teams. Entering the eighth, Ohio and Toledo were tied at 1 run apiece. The Rockets quickly jumped out in front with a home run to start the inning courtesy of sophomore outfielder, Eliza Maloney. That wasn’t it for Toledo, as it quickly followed the first home run with another one, this one hit by junior pitcher Madison McKay.
“They made the plays that we couldn’t at times, and I think that really kind of stifled us a bit,“ Hall said.
Even after the two home runs to start the inning, the Rockets weren’t done. Another two home runs put Ohio in a massive 7-run deficit in the first inning of extras.
Finally getting out of the top half of the inning, Ohio was up to bat and scratched across 3 more runs courtesy of senior outfielder Maddie Wilcox. It wasn't enough, though, as Ohio wasn’t able to get anything else going, losing by a score of 8-5.
“Pitching-wise, we did a pretty good job of keeping them at bay," Hall said. "I liked the response that we had late in the first game, when they went up 8 to 1, they didn’t quit. I think our response to that situation was good.”
After the fireworks of the first game had ended, the second game started with both teams energized from their respective 8th inning performances. The first two innings were slow for both teams, but Toledo picked up steam in the third inning, scoring 2 runs. The Rockets also scored runs in the fifth and sixth innings to pad their lead further.
Ohio, on the other hand, was held scoreless in this game. The Bobcats had the bases loaded a few times in the later innings of the game but could not get anything going. The fielding in this game also struggled a bit more, as Ohio had four errors. The Bobcats proceeded to lose the game with a score of 4-0.
“Losing two like this, it's been a while since we’ve been through this experience,“ Hall said. "So, how do we now learn from this? We lean in more, we don’t back away.”
