GAMES 41-43
RMU (25-15 / 14-5 #HLSB) @ Oakland (19-11 / 14-3 #HLSB)
Friday, April 29, 2022 • 3:00 p.m.
Saturday, April 30, 2022 • 1:00 p.m. (DH)
Oakland Softball Field • Rochester, Mich.
 
Cracker Jack & Sunflower Seeds (Dubble Bubble, Too)
 
- The RMU softball team visits Rochester, Mich., for its final road trip of the 2022 regular season with a three-game series against Oakland. The Golden Grizzlies sit in first place in the Horizon League standings, a half game ahead of the Colonials. The two teams will square off Friday, April 29, for a 3:00 p.m. single game before concluding the set with a doubleheader Saturday, April 30, slated for a 1:00 p.m. first pitch.
 
- RMU concluded an eight-game homestand at the North Athletic Complex last weekend with five games, sweeping a three-game set from Purdue Fort Wayne before dropping both ends of a doubleheader to Green Bay. Senior Erika Bell hit .412 (7-for-17) during the five games with a double, two triples and five RBI.
 
- From the circle last week, sophomore Jane Garver notched a complete game in the third and final game of the series against the Mastodons, a 4-1 win, scattering four hits, not issuing a walk and striking out nine.
 
- Fifth-year Taylor Rhinehart logged eight innings of action last week in two relief appearances for the Colonials, allowing just two hits and striking out six. She enters action this weekend @ Oakland tied with Madisyn Eads of Northern Kentucky tops in the Horizon League in saves (4).  
 
- A total of 1.5 games separate the top three teams in the Horizon League. Oakland sits atop the standings with an .824 winning percentage thanks to a league mark of 14-3, while RMU is second at 14-5 (.737) and Cleveland State is third at 14-6 (.700). The top two teams at the end of the regular season receive a bye in the 2022 #HLSB Tournament.
 
- RMU finished with a mark of 6-2 (.750) during its eight-game homestand, with redshirt freshman Meadow Sacadura leading the Colonials offensively with a .381/.409/.667 slash line along with her first two NCAA Division I home runs and five RBI.
 
- Junior Avery Winchell hit .318 (7-for-22) with four runs, a double and three RBI during RMU's eight-game homestand. Winchell has started each of RMU's last 10 games, hitting safely in six of those contests, to boost her 2022 overall average on the season to .222 (10-for-45). She's also scored 11 runs this year and connected for her first home run of the season @ Northern Kentucky (4/10).
 
- RMU recorded a 1.38 earned run average (ERA) during its eight-game homestand, with sophomore Jane Garver going 2-0 and allowing just an unearned run in 12 innings while striking out 14.
 
- Among Horizon League leaders, the Colonials sit second in the league in batting average (.259), on-base percentage (.344) and slugging (.375) while ranking third in earned run average (ERA) (3.19). Also from the circle, the Colonials pace #HLSB in saves (6) and rank second in shutouts (4).
 
- In conference play, RMU owns a .293 (167-for-569) batting average, which is tops in the circuit. The Colonials also lead the league against conference foes in runs (106), doubles (32) and total bases (254). From the circle, RMU ranks second against league opposition in earned run average (2.12).
 
- In a poll of Horizon League head coaches, RMU was picked to finish fourth in the 2022 preseason poll. Tabbed as the favorite was Oakland, which was followed by Youngstown State and UIC. The Colonials are led by head coach Jexx Varner, who is in his fourth season at the helm of the program. He has posted a record of 68-81 (.456) in his tenure at RMU.
 
- RMU returns home to the North Athletic Complex to conclude its regular season with four games. The Colonials will welcome Pitt for a single game Tuesday, May 3, before hosting Youngstown State in a three-game series Friday, May 6, and Saturday, May 7.

OAKLAND LINKS
- Live Stats
- Video (G1 - 4/30/22)
- Video (G2 - 4/30/22)
- RMU Athletics Gameday App
 
The All-Time Series (Oakland) – The Colonials and Golden Grizzlies have met six times prior to this weekend's three-game series, with RMU owning a 4-2 (.667) edge in the all-time series. Last season the Colonials took three of four from the Golden Grizzlies at the North Athletic Complex. The two programs also met in the 2021 Horizon League Tournament in Youngstown, Ohio, with Oakland earning a 5-4 victory over RMU. The four-game series as part of the 2021 regular season marked the first time the Colonials earned a series victory against a Horizon League foe.
 
The Streak – Senior Erika Bell is coming off an eight-game homestand in which she hit .360 (9-for-25) with a double, two triples and five RBI. She also extended her streak of safely reaching base to 22 games, the longest streak by a member of the Colonials since 2011, when former infielder Maritza Jimenez (2010-13) turned the trick in 23 straight contests. Bell, RMU's active leader in games played (143) and starts (131), is tied for 10th all-time in program history with Keri Meyer (2003-06) in walks with 46. A look at the longest streaks on record in program history for consecutive games safely reaching base …

Name	Year	No.
1. Lauren Dickinson	2001	28
2. Keri Meyer	2005	24
3. Jill Dorsch	2005	23
Kali Byers	2006	23
Maritza Jimenez	2011	23
6. Erika Bell	2022	22

Locked Out – Fifth-year Taylor Rhinehart has been a dominant pitcher for the Colonials out of the bullpen against Horizon League foes as RMU takes to the road for a key three-game set @ Oakland. Against #HLSB opposition, Rhinehart has yet to allow an earned run in 25.2 innings of work, an 0.00 earned run average (ERA) that is tops in the conference. Rhinehart owns 21 strikeouts and has allowed 16 hits and just three walks against Horizon League competition. She paces the Horizon League in saves (4) and has held opponents to just a .174 batting average, which ranks second in the league.

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