Youngstown, Ohio – The RMU softball team held elimination at arm's length twice Friday to advance to the championship of the 2022 Horizon League Tournament, earning victories over No. 2 seed Cleveland State and No. 6 seed Northern Kentucky at YSU Softball Field. In their first win of the day, the Colonials knocked off the Vikings, 5-2, before earning a 2-1 triumph over the Norse. RMU improved to 31-20 (.608) overall during the 2022 season with the pair of victories.
GAME 1 • W, 5-2 • vs. #2 Cleveland State
MOMENTS THAT MATTERED
Each team scored a run in the first inning, with redshirt freshman
Meadow Sacadura providing the Colonials with a sacrifice fly to bring home rookie
Alaina Koutsogiani with the first run of the contest, while an RBI single from Becky Hurosky of the Vikings tied it, 1-1, in the home half. RMU grabbed the lead for good in the fourth, as Sacadura opened the inning by reaching on an error before being moved up 60 feet thanks to a sacrifice bunt from freshman
Bailee Bertani. Yet another rookie, this time
Logan Black, came on to pinch run before CSU starter Melissa Holzopfel grooved a 1-1 offering to sophomore
Charlotte Grover, who pulled it down the line in left field. The bomb hit off the foul pole, giving the Colonials a 3-1 advantage thanks to Grover's fifth home run of the season.
ARMS ALOFT
Cleveland State got a run back in the bottom of the fourth off RMU starter
Rachael Rhinehart thanks to a single to center from Sydney Bajusz, which brought home Courtney Fernette, who had opened the inning with a triple to right. Freshman
Madison DeVault would spell Rhinehart with one out and two runners on, and she got Kiera Frascone to line out to short before striking out Kaelin Ettinger swinging to end the threat.
NATIONWIDE
The Colonials held a one-run lead until the top of the seventh, when RMU plated a pair of insurance runs courtesy of Sacadura. Koutsogiani opened the inning with an infield single, and after junior
Avery Winchell popped up a sacrifice attempt, senior
Erika Bell moved Koutsogiani to third with a single through the right side. Sophomore
Julia Ehrman came on to pinch run for Bell and promptly stole second before Sacadura drilled a single right back up the middle to score two runs and help the Colonials open up a 5-2 advantage.
IN CONTROL
DeVault earned the win in the circle for RMU to improve to 5-4 on the year by allowing just one hit in 3.2 innings of work, which was a single with one out in the fifth from Holzopfel. She retired each of the final eight hitters she faced, including a ground out of Aly Packish to help secure RMU's 30th win of the season.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
The two-run home run by Grover was part of a 2-for-4 effort from the shortstop, while Koutsogiani also finished 2-for-4 with a pair of runs. RMU banged out nine hits against the Vikings, with fifth-year
Taylor Rhinehart going 1-for-4 to extend her hitting streak to nine.
GAME 2 • W, 2-1 • vs. #6 Northern Kentucky
MOMENTS THAT MATTERED
A pitching duel between
Taylor Rhinehart and Madison Eads of the Norse, the elimination game featured just six hits as well as a lightning delay due to inclement weather in the area. The game was halted after an inning and-a-half, and NKU was able to strike first after play resumed, grabbing a 1-0 lead in the top of the fourth. Rhinehart got ahead of Kendyl McKeough with a pair of strikes before the third hitter in the order connected for a triple to right to lead off the frame. Jordan Jenkins followed by grounding out to second, scoring McKeough and giving the Norse a one-run lead. RMU came right back to tie it, 1-1, in the bottom of the fourth, as an RBI groundout from
Taylor Rhinehart scored Winchell, who doubled to left with one out before moving to third after a single from Bell.
THE DECISIVE RUN
Lauryn Hicks replaced Eads in the bottom of the fifth for Northern Kentucky, and she retired the side in order before opening the home half of the sixth by issuing a walk to fifth-year
Alaina York on four straight pitches. A passed ball allowed York to move to second, and with one out Hicks uncorked a wild pitch, moving York up another 60 feet. Winchell then hit a chopper to shortstop Tatum Biddle, who fired home to try to get the lead runner. Catcher Maddie Lacer couldn't corral the ball, however, with it popping out of her glove, allowing York a second opportunity to safely touch home plate and give RMU a 2-1 advantage.
SURGING
That opening would be all that Rhinehart would need to close the door. She tossed her second complete game in four starts, getting ahead of both Olivia Pastin and Lacer before inducing fly balls to center for the first two outs. She then punctuated the victory by striking out Trinity Robertson to end it. Rhinehart allowed just four hits and struck out seven, facing just four batters over the minimum in throwing 99 pitches.
30-FOR-30
In picking up wins No. 30 and 31 during the 2022 season Friday, the Colonials have reached the 30-win plateau for the first time since 2013 as well as the eighth time in program history on record. The school record for wins (35) came in 2012, while in 1997 the Colonials logged 34 victories and 32 in 1994, the first time RMU earned a national ranking.
UP NEXT
First pitch for the championship game between Oakland and RMU has been moved up to 10:00 a.m. Saturday at the Covelli Sports Complex due to the threat of inclement weather later in the day. Should the Colonials win, the two teams will play the deciding if necessary game at 12:30 p.m.
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