General 2/22/2021 12:00:00 AM

PAW PRINTS: The Week Ahead in Ohio Athletics

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ATHENS, Ohio – It's a big week for the Bobcats with MAC Championships in indoor track and field and wrestling set to start this weekend, and Ohio men's basketball is back in action for three games this week. Check out what else is going on in Ohio Athletics in this week's Paw Prints.

After the Ohio softball team's original opening weekend was rained out, the Bobcats once again are ready to kick off the 2021 season. Ohio heads to Knoxville, Tenn. on Monday, Feb. 22 for a doubleheader against No. 23 Tennessee. First pitch is set for 2 p.m. with game two to follow. The games will also be aired on SEC Network+

Ohio is then back in action this weekend for three games. Ohio will take on East Carolina Feb. 27-28 with a doubleheader on Saturday, Feb. 27 set to start at 1 p.m. Ohio will close out the series on Sunday at noon. The Bobcats first game on Saturday will be streamed on ESPN+.

The Bobcats were four innings into their season opener against UCONN on Feb. 12 at the Kickin' Chicken Classic in Conway, S.C. when the rains came. The tournament was unable to be salvaged with all games canceled.

Last season, the Bobcats were 11-15 before the remainder of the 2020 season was canceled due to Covid-19.

Ohio returns almost an entire roster from last season, losing only Alexa Holland to graduation. Key returners for the Green and White this season are; seniors Katie Yun (North Canton, Ohio), Allie Englant (Long Beach, Calif.), Madi McCrady (Brimfield, Ohio), Ava Heidorn (Marysville, Ohio) and Brooke Rice (Mason, Ohio), juniors Caroline Spacek (Beaumont, Texas), Caitlin Fogue (Columbia, Mo.) and Mackensie Kohl (Corona Del Mar, Calif.). Underclassmen who saw playing time before the erupt end to the season were, sophomores Alexis Dawe (Valley Springs, Calif.) Molly Troutman (Gahanna, Ohio) Holly Brehm (Mullens W. Va.) and Sophia Bernard (Canton. Ohio).

The Bobcats welcome eight freshman to the roster and graduate transfer Mikenzie Vaughn (Kennesaw, Ga.), who comes to the Bobcats from Florida Gulf Coast.

Tennessee is 5-1 on the season, most recently coming off of a doubleheader split with fellow MAC opponent Miami on Sunday afternoon.

East Carolina (5-1) is coming off of a three-win weekend at the Battle at the Beach in Conway, S.C. The Pirates will take on Charlotte on Wednesday before welcoming Ohio.

At long last, Ohio men's basketball (10-6, 6-4 MAC) is back. Ohio returns to the court for the first time since Feb. 2 this week for three games in five days. Ohio is set to begin the week on Tuesday, Feb. 23 against Akron. Tip-off is set for 2 p.m. inside the Convocation Center and will be shown on ESPN3. Ohio is back in action on Thursday, Feb. 25 against Eastern Michigan at 1 p.m. inside the Convo. That game will also be shown on ESPN3. Ohio will then take on Buffalo on Saturday, Feb. 25 at 2 p.m. inside the Convo on ESPN+.

Ohio last played on Feb. 2 in Mount Pleasant, Mich. where the Bobcats defeated Central Michigan, 83-69. Leading the Bobcats this season is junior guard Jason Preston (Orlando, Fla.) with 16.3 points 7.5 rebounds and 7.5 assists, followed by senior forward Dwight Wilson III (Tallahassee, Fla.) with 15.7 points and 7.4 boards a game. Redshirt junior forward Ben Vander Plas adds 12.8 points and 5.6 rebounds, while sophomore forward Ben Roderick (Powell, Ohio) and sophomore guard Lunden McDay (Akron. Ohio) all average double digits in scoring.

Akron (14-4, 12-3 MAC) is coming off of an 88-79 victory at Ball State on Friday, while Eastern Michigan (4-9, 1-8 MAC) is coming off a 64-51 loss at Kent State on Saturday and will face off with Bowling Green on Tuesday. Buffalo (9-7, 7-5 MAC) comes to the Convo after falling to Toledo on Friday night. The Bulls will face off with Northern Illinois and Central Michigan this week before coming to Athens on Saturday.

The Bobcats fell to Akron earlier this year in Akron, while Ohio defeated Buffalo in thrilling fashion in Amherst in late January. This is the first meeting this season between Ohio and Eastern Michigan.

It's officially MAC Championships time. The Ohio track and field team heads to Mount Pleasant, Mich. for the 2021 MAC Indoor Track and Field Championships Feb. 26-27. This year, the two-day event is hosted by Central Michigan at the Jack Skoog Indoor Track. The women's events are set to begin at 4 p.m. each day. Fans will be able to stream this year's event on CMU's website.

Ohio competed last weekend at the Kent State Tune-Up in Kent, Ohio, where a number of Bobcats performed well leading into MACs. Starting with senior Abby Moore (Rootstown, Ohio) who won her third-straight weight throw, this time with a season-best distance of 18.25 meters. She also turned in a top-five performance in the shot put again, registering a toss of 14.51 meters and a fourth-place finish.

The mile saw two Bobcats land in the top-four, with junior Stephanie Pierce (Fairborn, Ohio ) coming in second in 5:07.27 and freshman Alyssa Christian (Newark, Ohio) coming in behind her in third place, with a time of 5:11.29. Junior Rosie Lamb (Granville, Ohio) added to the Bobcats strong showing in the mile, finishing in fourth with a time of 5:11.96.

The 3,000-meter race saw senior Hailey Bowes (Arlington Heights, Ill.) lead Ohio, finishing in second in 10:01.06, followed by senior Jessie Hartman (Lebanon, Ohio) who placed third with a time of 10:21.86.

The Bobcats 4x400-meter relay squad finished in third place with a time of 4:10.95, while in the triple jump, freshman Emily McKenzie finished well for Ohio, placing fifth with a jump of 10.91 meters.

The Ohio baseball team (1-2) opens the home portion of its 2021 schedule this weekend, welcoming Morehead State to Athens on Friday, Feb. 26 for a doubleheader set to begin at 2 p.m. at Bob Wren Stadium. Ohio then heads to Morehead, Ky. on Sunday, Feb. 28 for a doubleheader at Allen Field. First pitch is set for 1 p.m.

Ohio is coming off of a 1-2 opening weekend at Radford where the Bobcats dropped the first two games of the series, before rallying back on Sunday to win 7-5.

Through three games, graduate transfer Harry Witwer-Dukes (Monmouth, Ore.) leads Ohio with a .571 batting average, with four hits including one double and one triple. Redshirt senior Joe Weisenseel (Strongsville, Ohio) added five hits for Ohio and five RBI. On the mound, senior Edward Kutt IV (Westlake, Calif.) picked up the win on Sunday registering a 1.80 ERA and five strikeouts in relief.

Morehead State (0-4) is coming off four-straight losses against Charlotte and Davidson last weekend. They will face off with Bellarmine on Wednesday before coming to Athens.

Ohio wrestling is back in action for the 2021 MAC Championships Feb. 26-27. This year's event is hosted by Rider University at the CURE Insurance Arena in Trenton, N.J. Friday's matches are set to start at 11 a.m., with Saturday's scheduled to begin at 12 p.m.

Ohio last competed on Feb. 14 against Cleveland State. Redshirt freshman Oscar Sanchez (Genoa, Ohio) earned a 3-2 win by decision over freshman Jake Manley at 125 pounds and redshirt senior Mario Guillen (Perrysburg, Ohio) posted a 9-6 win by decision over sophomore Logan Heil at 133. Ohio added to its point total courtesy of a pair of victories at 184 and 197. Redshirt freshman Carson Brewer (Avon, Ind.) earned an overtime win over sophomore DeAndre Nassar at 184, and redshirt freshman Colin McNamara (Aurora, Ohio) followed with a 1-0 win by decision over freshman Justin Jaeckin at 197.

The Ohio swimming and diving squad is back in action Feb. 26-28 at the Akron Lat Chance Meet hosted by Akron at the Ocasek Natatorium. Competition on Friday is set to begin at 6 p.m.

Ohio last competed on Jan. 30 in Athens, defeating Toledo, 217-82, winning 14 out of the 16 events. Individually, sophomore McKenzie Grau (Mason, Ohio) won both the 50-yard freestyle (23.93) and 100-yard freestyle (51.91). Redshirt sophomore Kendra Sheehan (Columbus, Ohio) took first in the 100-yard butterfly (58.05) and finished third in the 50-yard freestyle (24.88). sophomore Emma Fortman (Madeira, Ohio) finished first in the 200-yard freestyle with a time of 1:53.86 and turned in a pair of second-place finishes in the 100-yard freestyle (52.70) and the 500-yard freestyle (5:10.36). redshirt sophomore Kelsey Morgan (Pickerington, Ohio) posted wins in both the 100-yard breaststroke (1:05.61) and the 200-yard breaststroke (2:22.00).

The Bobcats will be back in Athens next week, March 6, to take on Eastern Michigan. It will be the Bobcats' Senior Day.

Ohio women's basketball (12-6, 10-5 MAC) is back in action on Saturday, Feb. 27 when they head to Amherst, N.Y. for a clash with Buffalo.

The Bobcats clinched a spot to the 2021 MAC Tournament in Cleveland, Ohio on Sunday.

Ohio is led by senior guard Cece Hooks (Dayton, Ohio) who is averaging 25.7 points and 6.2 rebounds a game. Redshirt junior forward Erica Johnson (Mansfield, Ohio) adds 19.5 points and 5.9 boards, while senior forward Gabby Burris (Baltimore, Ohio) adds 13.3 points a game.

Buffalo (12-7, 9-5 MAC) is coming off of an 83-76 victory at Ball State on Saturday and will face off with Kent State on the road on Wednesday before hosting the Bobcats.

The Bobcats defeated Buffalo, 84-81, in a thrilling come-from-behind victory on Jan. 20 in Athens, Ohio.

WEEKLY RECAP

MEN'S GOLF
Invitational at Savannah Harbor | Recap | Results

VOLLEYBALL
L, 3-2 at Bowling Green | Recap | Box Score

DIVING
UB Diving Invite | Recap | Results

TRACK & FIELD
At Kent State Tune-Up | Recap | Results

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