Ohio will travel south to play its first games since spring break when the team takes on University of South Carolina Upstate and then plays in a tournament in Charleston, South Carolina.
The Bobcats (14-6) will start their St. Patrick’s Day weekend tour of South Carolina against USC Upstate (23-5) on Friday. The Spartans, who made the NCAA tournament last season, are off to a hot start this season and are coming off a 7-5 loss to South Carolina. The Gamecocks beat the Bobcats 10-0 earlier this season.
After the game between two schools that both feature green as their team colors, the Bobcats will travel across the state to face both Western Carolina and College of Charleston twice in the College of Charleston Tournament on Saturday and Sunday.
The Catamounts of Western Carolina are 5-7 on the season and lost to the only Mid-American Conference school they have played so far, Toledo, earlier this season 4-2. Ohio beat Presbyterian 3-0 earlier in the season in the only game the Bobcats have played against a Big South opponent.
College of Charleston is 11-10, with two losses to South Carolina. The Gamecocks are the only common opponent the Cougars and Bobcats have played this season.
Ohio has not played since its 14-6 win over Wright State on March 12. Ohio was supposed to host Marshall earlier this week, but the game was postponed because of the cold temperatures in Athens.
The Bobcats looked to use the extra time to rest after playing six games in five days over spring break. The extra time between games could also help the team adjust to the lineup changes that followed the return of Deanna Cole.
The offense has been led by sophomore third baseman Alex Day, who is hitting .357 with nine RBIs. Ohio’s hitters have also shown a lot of power, as Morgan Geno and Madison Claytor both have hit three home runs this season, leading the team. Mikayla Cooper has hit two homers.
In the circle, Ohio has been led by the impressive pitching of Savannah Jo Dorsey. The senior picked up her third MAC East Pitcher of the Week honor for her work over Spring Break.
Dorsey is 8-3 with a 0.78 ERA over 71.2 innings pitched. She has picked up two saves and a shutout over her 13 appearances (10 starts), while striking out 106 batters. She has only surrendered eight earned runs.
