HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. – The Northern Kentucky University softball team concludes a seven-game road swing on Wednesday with a doubleheader against Miami University at Miami Softball Stadium. First pitch is set for 4 p.m.
NKU is looking to rally back from a weekend sweep at the hands of Atlantic Sun Conference rival East Tennessee State. The Norse held leads in each of the three games, falling by a 6-5 score in Saturday's opener before dropping both ends of a doubleheader on Sunday, 5-2 and 2-1. NKU is now 3-26 overall on the year.
Links to live stats and an audio broadcast of Wednesday's games can be found at nkunorse.com.
A WORD ABOUT MIAMI: The RedHawks enter the midweek twin bill with a 13-15 record as winners of three of their last four games, including a doubleheader sweep of Kent State in Mid-American Conference play last weekend. Bree Lipscomb provides the pop in the RedHawks lineup, ranking fifth in the Mid-American Conference with a .659 slugging percentage. The junior has a team-best seven home runs and 28 RBIs. Taylor Shuey has scored 19 runs as well to lead the team in that regard. In the circle, Paige Myers and Amber Logemann have provided the 1-2 punch as a starting rotation, both posting a season ERA hovering just over three and accounting for 10 of Miami's 13 pitching victories.
LAST TIME AGAINST THE REDHAWKS: Emily Schwaeble struck out 12 batters and added a three-run home run at the plate, but Miami struck last and held on for a 5-4 victory on April 16, 2013.
Dee Dee Davis went 3-for-4 and scored two runs while Alexis Van Horn added a double. Tiyona Marshall and Hailey Reed each had two-hit games for the RedHawks, who won the first meeting between Miami and NKU.
After the Norse scored a run in the first inning on an error, Miami struck back with four runs in the fifth, capped by the two-run single by Reed. Schwaeble's bomb came in the bottom of the fifth to tie the game at 4-4 before Marshall drove in the game-winning in the seventh.
CAUDILL STRONG IN WEEKEND FINALE: Alex Caudill had a strong showing in the final game of the East Tennessee State series, giving up just two runs on six hits and striking out two batters in 6.1 innings of work, marking one of her best pitching performances this season. Unfortunately, the offense wasn't able to support the junior as the Norse took a 2-1 loss in the game.
STRALEY BACK IN FORM: After seeing a stumble in her on-base streak,
KC Straley is right back in her offensive groove, bringing an eight-game on-base streak into Wednesday's games at Miami. Straley has reached base in 25 of the team's 29 games so far the season, and her efforts have shown in the stats further, as she has amassed 15 stolen bases, shooting up to second in the league in the category, and a team-best 20 runs scored.
