By Nicholas Huenefeld/Owens Sports Information
Toledo, OH---The No. 14-ranked Express softball team continued their winning ways on Thursday with a sweep of Cuyahoga C.C. in their Ohio Community College Athletic Conference (OCCAC) opener.
Game 1: Owens 7 Cuyahoga 0
Jordan Ratliff (Summerfield/Petersburg, Mich.) and Alaina Haubert (Gibsonburg/Gibsonburg, Ohio) led the Express in the first game.
Ratliff (7-0) went the distance while allowing only four hits and one walk while striking out eight Challengers. Meanwhile, Haubert went a perfect 4-for-4 from the plate including a two-run, inside the park home run in the first inning. She added three runs and two RBI.
After Haubert put the Express up 2-0 in the first, Owens scored one more in the third when Bridget Wolfe (Bellevue/Bellevue, Ohio) lined an RBI single to left field, which scored Haubert.
Owens finished their scoring for the day with four runs in the fourth inning. Tayler Redinger (Fremont Ross/Fremont, Ohio) led off with a triple to left field. Then, three Challenger errors later, Owens put three more across the plate - including Kristen Roznoski (Cardinal Stritch/Toledo, Ohio), Kelley Molloy (Whitmer/Toledo, Ohio) and Haubert.
Aside from Haubert, four other Express batters got one hit apiece - Wolfe, Redinger, Courtney Mowery (Genoa/Genoa, Ohio) and Lindsey Bandeen (Springfield/Holland, Ohio).
Kacey Rose took the loss for Cuyahoga.
Game 2: Owens 15 Cuyahoga 2
Owens scored four in the first, five in the second and six in the third to finish off Cuyahoga in the second game.
The Express went 14-for-26 from the plate - led, once again, by Haubert, who went 3-for-4 with a double, a triple, two stolen bases, three runs and three RBI.
She finished a home run short of the cycle in the second game while going 7-for-8 with six runs and five RBI in the doubleheader. Her only out was a line drive in her final AB that the third baseman barely snagged above her head.
Wolfe, Roznoski and Redinger added two hits each for Owens. Wolfe finished 2-for-3 with three runs and three RBI, while Redinger went 2-for-3 with three RBI. Roznoski added three runs.
As a team, Owens finished 11-for-17 in at bats with RBI opportunities and 7-for-8 when a runner was on third. They only left four on base and knocked in five of their runs with two outs.
In the fifth inning alone, the Express strung together eight straight hits.
While Owens was doing well offensively, Kasey Graham (Clay/Oregon, Ohio) pitched a five inning, complete game on the mound to move her record to 3-0. The freshman allowed five hits, two runs and no walks while striking out five.
Melanie Hamlett took the loss for Cuyahoga.
The Express (16-0, 2-0 OCCAC) will now take on Rochester College in Rochester Hills, Mich. tomorrow at 3:30 p.m. in a non-conference matchup. Their next home game is scheduled for Saturday at 1 p.m. vs Delta College.