Final Stats

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SPARTANBURG, S.C. - The Ohio softball team's (6-3) wrapped up the Spartan Classic on Sunday afternoon, falling to Virginia Tech, 5-4. The Bobcats concluded the five-game trip with a 3-2 record.

In the opening frame, the Hokies struck first when Vanessa Gonzalez hit a solo home run off Danielle Stiene (Loveland, Ohio) to put Ohio down 1-0. A walk and single later, Caitlyn Nolan doubled down the right field line to score Katey Smith. In the next at-bat, a wild pitch brought Elizabeth Birle in from third to make it 3-0 Virginia Tech. After another walk, Savannah Jo Dorsey (Grove City, Ohio) entered to relieve Stiene with runners on the corners and two outs. Against the first batter Dorsey faced, a wild pitch brought the runner from third in to score and make it 4-0 before she fanned the batter to end the frame.

In the bottom of the second, a leadoff double from Mikayla Cooper (Delaware, Ohio), a plunking of Natalie Alvarez (Long Beach, Calif.), and a bunt from Amanda Dalton (Salem, Va.) loaded the bases for MacKenzie Brunswick (Bellefontain, Ohio), who delivered a two-run double that hit the fence in center field. With runners on second and third, Michaela Dorsey (Grove City, Ohio) sent a shot to the shortstop, who misplayed the ball, allowing Dalton to score, and putting Dorsey on first. A walk to Casie Hutchinson (Lebanon, Ohio) loaded the bases yet again, and the Hokies finally decided to change pitchers. Madison Claytor (Alpharetta, Ga.) then drew a walk to bring Brunswick home and tie the ballgame at four apiece before the inning drew to a close.

"I had to do what I had to do to spark the team and get them fired up again," Brunswick said about her double, "I think we started the game a little flat, and then once we got the runs on the board, the team really picked up the energy."

In the top of the fourth, a leadoff walk to Kinsey Johnson turned into a one-run lead for the Hokies when Olivia Lattin doubled into left field to score Johnson. Despite a few scattered chances for the Bobcats throughout the remainder of the game, the 5-4 scoreline held and the Hokies eked out a win.

"Through the game, we knew that [Tyler] was only throwing two pitches for a called strike in a tight zone," head coach Jodi Hermanek explained, "We weren't doing a good enough job of letting her throw to the zone. We were chasing pitches out of the zone, so we have to be better with our discipline so that we can be a stronger offense."

For Stiene, her 0.2 IP produced four runs (all earned) on three hits and two walks, while getting one strikeout. Dorsey's 6.1 innings in relief showed one run on two hits and five walks with eight strikeouts.

Offensively, Ohio tallied four hits, one each from Dorsey, Cooper, Brunswick, and Taylor Saxton (Circleville, Ohio).

"They had a great weekend offensively,” Hermanek said. “Even though we didn't get that win we wanted against Virginia, we still had 10 hits and accumulated a number of runs. Same with today. We had some great hitting, especially with Mackenzie [Brunswick] coming off the bench in a clutch hit situation. For a kid who hasn't seen a whole lot of at-bats, I'm just really proud of those kinds of moments."

After a quick trip home, the Bobcats continue their early season road trip when they head to Lubbock, Texas, March 3-5 for the Texas Tech Invitational. While there, the Bobcats will face McNeese State, Stephen F. Austin, Texas Tech and UTSA.

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