Softball gears up for OAC Tournament Championship run
The Muskingum softball team will begin its quest for a 19th Ohio Athletic Conference Tournament Championship on Thursday, May 11, when the four-seed Muskies play top-seed and host Mount Union at noon. The OAC Tournament, which runs May 11-14, and features the top-four schools from the regular season, will be held at 23rd Street Softball Field in Alliance, Ohio.
May 9, 2023
The Muskingum softball team will begin its quest for a 19th Ohio Athletic Conference Tournament Championship on Thursday, May 11, when the four-seed Muskies play top-seed and host Mount Union at noon. The OAC Tournament, which runs May 11-14, and features the top-four schools from the regular season, will be held at 23rd Street Softball Field in Alliance, Ohio.
For more information about the schedule, cost of admission, and directions, please check out the official OAC Tournament Page.
The Basics
- Location – 23rd Street Softball Field – Alliance, Ohio
- Muskingum enters the OAC Tournament as the four-seed and will play the top-seed and host Mount Union on Thursday, May 11, at noon.
- Marietta will be the two-seed and play three-seed Baldwin Wallace at 10:00 AM.
- The tournament is a double-elimination format, with the tournament champion receiving an NCAA Tournament automatic bid.
- The Muskies have advanced to the OAC Tournament in 33 of the 37 years it has been held.
May 11 - Day One
- Game One - No. 2 Marietta vs. No. 3 Baldwin Wallace, 10:00 AM
- Game Two - No. 1 Mount Union vs. No. 4 Muskingum, Noon
- Game Three - Winners of games one and two, 2:00 PM
- Game Four - Losers of games one and two, 4:00 PM
May 12 - Day Two
- Game Five - Winner of game four vs. loser of game three, 11:00 AM
- Game Six - Winners of games three and five, 1:00 PM
May 13 - Day Three
- Game Seven - If Necessary, same teams as game six, noon
Muskingum – Inside the Numbers | Schedule | Roster | Stats
- Freshman Cara Taylor finished the regular season at the plate leading the Muskie offense with a team-best .387 batting average, and led the squad with 46 hits. Taylor also has eight stolen bases, tallied eight doubles, three triples, one home run, and 23 RBIs.
- Senior Claire Guilliams notched season-highs in batting average (.370), hits (37), and home runs (4). She also has five doubles and 14 RBIs.
- Senior Sarah Piteo finished the regular season at the plate with a career-high .367 batting average, with 33 hits. Piteo has two home runs, six doubles, and tallied 21 RBIs. She was also named OAC Softball Hitter of the Week earlier this season after her six-hit performance against Otterbein.
- Senior Hannah Smith carries a 15-4 record in the circle with a 2.07 ERA. She pitched 125.0 innings and registered a career-best 125 strikeouts.
- Junior Madelyn Thomas has an 11-6 record and a 2.35 ERA. Thomas pitched in 107.1 innings with 90 strikeouts. Earlier this season, she was named OAC Pitcher of the Week after striking out five and holding the John Carroll offense to one hit en route to Muskingum's thrilling 1-0 walk-off victory.
- Muskingum finished the regular season with a 26-12 overall record and an 11-7 slate in the OAC.
- As a team, Muskingum has a team batting average of .332 and a fielding average of .959.
- The Muskies tallied 336 hits, 53 doubles, eight triples, and 21 home runs.
- The Muskie pitching staff holds a 2.25 ERA.
Earlier this season against Baldwin Wallace | Game One | Game Two
- Muskingum earned two shutout victories en route to defeating the Yellow Jackets at Donna J. Newberry Field. Muskingum won the opener 8-0 and secured the 9-0 nightcap victory.
- Game one saw the Muskies tally eight runs off seven hits. Freshman Cara Taylor led the Muskies going 4-for-4 at the dish, while senior Hannah Smith notched eight strikeouts and pitched six shutout innings.
- In game two, Muskingum plated nine runs off eight hits. Junior Rosie Hayes led the Muskies at the plate, going 2-for-2, while junior Madelyn Thomas threw three strikeouts and fired five innings of work to secure the 9-0 victory.
Earlier this season against Marietta | Game One | Game Two
- Against Marietta, the Muskies won the opener 7-4 but ultimately dropped the nightcap 6-5.
- Game one saw the Muskies plating seven runs off 11 hits, while Marietta scored four runs off eight hits. Freshman Cara Taylor paced the Muskie offense by going 3-for-4 at the plate with two RBIs. Senior Hannah Smith earned the win after pitching 5.0 innings and tallying five strikeouts.
- Muskingum scored five runs off six hits in game two, while Marietta plated six runs off 10 hits. Junior Rosie Hayes led the Muskie bats with two hits and an RBI. Junior Madelyn Thomas took the loss after allowing four runs on seven hits.
Earlier this season against Mount Union | Game One | Game Two
- Against Mount Union, the Muskies concluded its regular season with a pair of losses against the Purple Raiders. Muskingum fell in game one, 8-1, and slipped in the nightcap, 5-1.
- Game one saw the Muskies plate one run off eight hits, while Mount Union plated eight runs off 18 hits. Senior Claire Guilliams led the Muskingum offense with two hits and an RBI. Junior Madelyn Thomas took the loss in the circle after allowing four runs off five hits.
- Muskingum plated one run off four hits in game two, while Mount Union plated five runs off 10 hits. Junior Kalie Eshelman hit a solo home run to pace the Muskie offense. Senior Hannah Smith was dealt the loss after going four innings and allowing five runs.