Miami junior shortstop Kylie McChesney tries to turn two against Ohio University Friday. McChesney is hitting .250 for the season with a home run, 10 runs scored and 11 RBIs. She has started 36 games this season. (Ben Taylor | The Miami Student)
The Miami University softball team now finds itself in dire straits in the Mid-American Conference as it was swept by Ohio University 1-0 and 4-3 and split a pair of 3-0 decisions against the University of Akron. The RedHawks (18-23, 6-8 MAC) are in last place in the East Division and have lost seven of their last nine games.
"We're disappointed with the weekend in terms of outcomes," head coach Clarisa Crowell said. "With two conference weekends left, we need to take care of business and focus on bouncing back. [Senior pitcher] Paige Myers had a great weekend on the mound. We just can't go 1-3 over the weekend, even though Ohio and Akron are good teams. We'll focus on Morehead State [University] and work to get back on track."
In both games against Ohio (25-19, 10-4 MAC), Miami outplayed the Bobcats, but ultimately fell due to untimely defensive errors. In the first matchup, Myers held OU to three hits in five innings of work while the offense edged its foes in hits six to four. However, a pair of defensive errors in the ninth allowed the Green and White to score the lone run of the game as the 'Hawks failed to muster any more hits.
The Red and White took early control in the second contest as junior first baseman Shanyn McIntyre picked up an RBI in the second, followed by another by junior outfielder Bree Lipscomb in the third and yet another RBI in the fourth by junior outfielder Taylor Shuey. Sophomore pitcher Amber Logemann was dominant on the mound as she went 6 innings with two hits allowed and never let a base-runner past first base. But things would fall apart for the RedHawks in the seventh as Ohio strung together a couple of hits before hitting a three-run homer to knot it up. A defensive error gave the lead to the 'Cats as the home team went down in order to close the game.
Miami made amends in the first bout with Akron (21-12, 7-5 MAC) Saturday, as senior catcher Kayla Ledbetter scored on a fielding error, sophomore designated hitter Jenna Modic hit a RBI-single and junior third baseman Remy Edwards hit another RBI in the first inning. That was all the scoring the team needed as Myers shut down the Zips' offense, picking up a complete game shutout with nine strikeouts and five hits allowed.
But that would be the last time the RedHawks scored during the weekend as Akron recorded an RBI in the first and scored two more off an error and a wild pitch in the second game Sunday. The Red and White had runners in scoring position twice in the afternoon and failed to capitalize on both of them. Logemann compiled a solid start with two earned runs off four hits and registered six strikeouts in 4 and 2-3 innings of work, while Myers did great work in relief by not allowing a hit.
"We as a team played well. We just needed to string together a few more runs," Myers said. "We need to keep our heads up. The games against Ohio were hard to lose. Our pitching's been better and it helps set the tone for our hitters. We just need to focus on being a better team."
Miami was supposed to travel for a double header against Morehead State University, but the game was canceled due to expected poor weather. The games will not be made up. The RedHawks next games are against Ball State University Saturday and Sunday in Muncie, Ind.
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