AKRON, Ohio – The Bowling Green State University softball team rallied from a four-run deficit to tie the game in the sixth inning, but the host University of Akron pushed a run across the plate in the bottom of the inning, and the Zips hung on for a 7-6 win. The victory gave UA a sweep of the teams' Mid-American Conference doubleheader on Tuesday afternoon (April 1).

Redshirt freshman Addie Martin had three extra-base hits and drove in six runs for the Falcons (12-22, 4-6 MAC). Martin had a double in each game, and also homered in the nightcap, with four RBI in the latter game.

Junior Katie Hutter had a double and scored a run in both games, while classmate Delaney Davis had a total of four hits, including three in the second game.

The Zips (18-17, 5-5 MAC) posted a 10-2, six-inning win in the opener.

Freshman Morgan Beckham pitched in relief in both games, allowing just one run and five hits in a total of 5 2/3 innings.

BGSU-AKRON GAME ONE – HOW IT HAPPENED
• Neither team had a baserunner until the Falcons put back-to-back batters aboard in the second. Ava McKee singled up the middle with two outs, and Delaney Davis followed with a base hit through the right side. But, UA starting pitcher Macy Walters got an inning-ending popup.
• In the bottom of the second, Mackenzie Krafcik retired two batters, giving her five-straight putouts to begin the game. But, the hosts then put together a rally. After back-to-back singles by Alexis Campbell and Lily Sullivan, Katie Cantrell followed with a two-run double.
• And, UA batted around in the third, adding to the lead. Three-straight singles began the inning, producing a run, and another run crossed the plate on a groundout. Sullivan singled to plate a run, and Cantrell then reached base before Delaney Jenkinson's double scored another teammate for a 6-0 lead.
• BGSU got on the board in the fifth frame. Hanna Massaro led off with a single, and Katie Hutter drove a one-out pitch to right-center, where it hit the top of the wall on the fly. Hutter's double was followed by an Addie Martin double, with both Massaro and Hutter scoring on the latter hit.
• Akron scored a run in the bottom of the inning, as Sullivan singled, Cantrell doubled and Sullivan scored on a fielder's-choice grounder by Brooke Sivek. Then, UA ended the game in the sixth.
• Sophia Wygast drew a leadoff walk, and after a ground ball resulted in a force at second, Campbell was hit by a pitch. Sullivan's fourth hit of the game drove in a run, and after a walk loaded the bases, back-to-back wild pitches each scored a run and gave the Zips an eight-run lead.
• Sullivan and Cantrell combined to go 7-for-7 in the win.

BGSU-AKRON GAME TWO – HOW IT HAPPENED
• The Falcons struck quickly in the second game. Hutter led off with a double to left, and Martin then switched places with Hutter. Martin drove a ball down the left-field line for another BGSU double, driving home the game's first run. Martin took third on a wild pitch, then scored on Hannah Hunt's grounder.
• But, the Zips answered quickly. Sivek led off with an infield single, and Meagan Lee reached on a bunt single. Then, Sydney Selker singled up the middle to cut the BG lead in half, and a Wygast hit tied the score. UA took a 3-2 lead on a fielder's choice.
• Both teams went in order in the second, but UA capitalized on a pair of BG errors in the third. Lee reached on a throwing error, advancing to second on the play, and Selker singled her home. After a Wygast hit and a Cantrell walk loaded the bases, BG reliever Morgan Beckham struck out Campbell for the first out. A sac fly scored another run, and then a double steal gave the Zips a 6-2 lead.
• BG got a run back in the fourth. Davis led off with an infield hit, and Massaro reached when her sac bunt resulted in an infield error. A bunt single by Kendall Mathews loaded the bases, and after a strikeout, Martin's fly ball to right-center allowed Davis to tag and score. Taylor Behrendt scorched a line drive that happened to be hit directly at UA pitcher Madie Jamrog, who caught it for the third out.
• In the fifth, Peyton Steffes drove a ball to left-center with one out, and made it all the way to third on the play. One out later, she scored on a Davis single to make it a 6-4 game.
• Then, in the sixth, the Falcons tied the game. Mathews led off with a drive to the wall in left, resulting in a two-base error. After another fly ball produced the first out, UA made a pitching change, but Martin greeted Maddelynn Lee with a mammoth homer to left that tied the game at 6-6. Hunt doubled with two down, but Walters – Akron's fourth pitcher of the game – got a foul pop for the third out.
• The Zips pushed the go-ahead run across the plate in the bottom of the inning. Abigail Scheller led off with a walk, and after Beckham struck out Jenkinson, Sivek's hot shot made it through the infield despite a diving effort by shortstop Martin, putting runners at first and second. Then, Meagan Lee followed with an RBI single to left-center. Third baseman Behrendt grabbed a Selker ground ball and begin an inning-ending double play, but the Zips had the lead.
• In the seventh, McKee led off with a single, and a sac bunt by Davis sent pinch-runner Reghan Stephany to second. Massaro singled through the left side, sending Stephany to third. Walters got a popup for the second out, and Hutter battled the UA hurler through an eight-pitch at-bat before lacing a ball to the right side. First baseman Wygast, however, went down to stop the ball, and while on the ground was able to tag the first-base bag for the final out.
• BGSU had an 11-9 advantage in hits, with Davis going 3-for-3 and Martin going 2-for-3 with a double, a homer and four RBI.
• Meagan Lee had three hits to lead the Zips, as the top-four players in the batting order combined for all nine UA hits.

UP NEXT
• The Falcons head west this weekend for a three-game series against Northern Illinois. The teams are scheduled to play a Saturday (April 5) doubleheader, followed by a Sunday (April 6) single game.

• Then, the Orange and Brown will play a non-conference game at Notre Dame next Wednesday (April 9) night. The Falcons' next home game is scheduled for Friday, April 11, when Western Michigan comes to town.

FOLLOW THE FALCONS
• For more information on BGSU softball, follow the Falcons on Twitter/X (@BGAthletics and @BGSUSoftball) and Instagram (@bgsu_softball) as well as on the web right here at BGSUFalcons.com.