Eastern Michigan Athletics
Eastern Michigan University
15-29
Michigan State
25-18
Early Deficit Too Much for Eagles to Overcome in Loss to Spartans
4/25/2017 5:53:00 PM | Softball
Amanda Akles led the Eagles, going 2-for-3 at the plate
Sophomore Amanda Akles (La Habra, Calif.-La Habra) registered two of EMU's six hits, going 2-for-3 at the plate. With a pair of hits, Akles extended her hit streak to four games and recorded her sixth multi-hit performance of the season.
Michigan State struck first, plating a run in its first trip to the plate. A leadoff walk came around to score on an RBI double down the left field line, giving MSU a 1-0 lead. The Spartans went on to load the bases from there, but sophomore Nicolle Miranda (Wilmington, Calif.-Port of Los Angeles) snagged a comebacker in the circle to escape the jam.
Eastern responded with a two-out rally in the second, but came up empty. Hostetler ripped a two-out two-bagger down the left field line and sophomore Sam Saporito (Eastvale, Calif.-Eleanor Roosevelt) walked, but a strikeout ended the threat with two stranded.
The Spartans extended their lead to 10 in the second, plating nine runs on six hits. A two-run home run was followed by a triple and an RBI single, before a bases-clearing double brought about an EMU pitching change. Despite two changes in the circle, the Eagles could not contain the Spartan offense, giving MSU a 10-0 advantage into the third.
EMU got on the board in the third, capitalizing on a pair of MSU miscues to take a 10-0 lead on an errant throw down to third. Senior Taylor Wagner (Marshalltown, Iowa-Marshalltown) brought another run across on a sacrifice fly, cutting the deficit to eight, 10-2, through two and a half frames.
Michigan State came back with a three-run fourth to push its lead back to double digits, 13-2, with Eastern coming to the plate in the fifth. The Eagles put two on via back-to-back base knocks by Akles and Wagner, but a groundout solidified the run-rule loss, 13-2.
The Eagles return to Mid-American Conference play this weekend, April 28-29, in DeKalb, Ill. There, the Green and White will close out a four-game roadtrip with a three-game set versus the Huskies of Northern Illinois University. First pitch of the series opener is slated for 3 p.m. on Friday, April 28.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Jordan Watson (8-4)
L: Miranda, Nicolle (5-9)
Batting:
2B: Hostetler, Haley 1
RBI: Wagner, Taylor 1
SF: Wagner, Taylor 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Kriegshauser, Michelle 1 ; Lopez, Lucy 1
SB: Lopez, Lucy 1
Batting:
2B: Lea Foerster 1 ; Ebonee Echols 1 ; Kaitlyn Eveland 1 ; Sarah Gutknecht 1
3B: McKenzie Long 1
HR: Lea Foerster 1
RBI: Lea Foerster 4 ; Ebonee Echols 2 ; Kaitlyn Eveland 3 ; Sarah Gutknecht 2 ; Lexi White 1 ; Melanie Baccay 1
SH: McKenzie Long 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Lea Foerster 3 ; McKenzie Long 2 ; Ebonee Echols 2 ; Kaitlyn Eveland 1 ; Sarah Gutknecht 1 ; Kelcey Carrasco 1 ; Kelly Zackrison 1 ; Lexi White 1 ; Melanie Baccay 1
HBP: Melanie Baccay 1
