Softball (10-22, 4-4 MAC) took three consecutive losses in a series at Miami (OH) (20-14, 8-6 MAC) this weekend. The RedHawks now jump to fourth in the MAC, while Buffalo drops to seventh.
UB started the weekend off slow, taking their first loss Friday. The Bulls couldn’t have asked for a better start to the game, going up 2-0 in the second inning thanks to runs scored by freshman catcher Lily Lauck and junior outfielder Sara Kelly. UB was able to maintain that early lead through the third.
But in the fourth inning, the RedHawks sprung to life and scored five runs. UB junior second basewoman/shortstop Tiana Williams scored another run in the fifth, and the Bulls out hit Miami 7-6, but none of it was enough to take the game. The game ended with UB’s 20th loss of the season, 5-3.
They met again in Saturday’s doubleheader, but the Bulls couldn’t flip the script. The first game started off with a scoreless first inning, but Miami followed that up with five runs into five straight innings. Not only were the Bulls not able to score a single run the entire game, they also only recorded a single hit.
Buffalo had junior pitcher Julia Tarantino on the mound for the first game. Tarantino was able to strike out nine Miami players in the game, one more than grad student pitcher Brianna Pratt had for the RedHawks, but still ended up giving them nine hits. Saturday’s first game ended with another UB loss, 5-0.
The Bulls seemed to get deja vu later that Saturday, as they again lost to Miami 5-0. Miami managed to score five runs off of nine hits just like they did in the first game of the day. Freshman pitcher Emily Watters was pitching for the majority of the second game, but only struck out two of twenty-two batters.
The RedHawks scored their first run in the first inning, followed by four runs in the third, concluding the three-game series with three straight wins against the Bulls.
UB has a chance to redeem themselves in another three-bout series later this week when they take on Akron on Tuesday and Wednesday at home.
The sports desk can be reached at sports@ubspectrum.com
