Miami softball falls to Louisville

By Jordan Rinard, Senior Staff Writer

The Miami University softball team dropped an 8-1 decision to University of Louisville Thursday.

After the game, RedHawks head coach Clarisa Crowell was upset with her team, who, she said, just didn't put in the effort.

"I'm extremely disappointed in this team. We got punched in the mouth in every phase of the game," Crowell said. "I'm disappointed that we showed up like this at home especially. Our effort just wasn't there today, for whatever reason. We need to bounce back Sunday against Iowa State; they're a good team in the Big 12. We need to get back on track; there's no excuse for it. We need to get better. Our effort is something that we can control, but it just wasn't there today."

Two Miami (13-10) errors handed the Cardinals a pair of runs at the top of the second inning. Louisville scored again in the second and once more in the third off of another MU miscue.

An RBI double from junior first baseman Taylor Shuey in the bottom of the fourth finally put the 'Hawks on the board, but the Cards responded with a RBI groundout in the fifth.

Another defensive mishap in which Miami's pitcher threw to first led to another Louisville run. The Cardinals rounded out the scoring with two RBIs in the top of the seventh.

The Red and White offense generated five hits on the day. Senior center fielder Tiyona Marshall went 2-3 on the day, while Shuey, senior shortstop Kylie McChesney, and freshman catcher Rylee Whispel each recorded one hit. Miami had only two runners in scoring position on the day.

The pitching staff also struggled, as Louisville racked up 12 hits in the game. Junior pitcher Amber Logemann (0-5) gave up seven hits in 4 innings, and senior reliever Megan Mattera allowed three earned runs on five hits in 3 innings.

The RedHawks attempt to right the ship at 2 p.m. Sunday when they travel to Ames, Iowa to take on Iowa State University in a doubleheader.

Iowa State (16-9) rolls into its home stand this weekend after winning three straight games. Junior infielder/outfielder Brittany Gomez has been an offensive powerhouse for the team with a .416 batting average, a .517 slugging percentage and a .441 on-base percentage. Sophomore pitcher Katie Johnson (7-5) is a steady hand on the mound with 2.77 ERA in four complete games. The Cyclones are 4-0 at home and host the University of South Dakota in a doubleheader Saturday before facing Miami.