Members of the Ohio State softball team huddle during the Ohio State-Michigan game on April 9. Ohio State lost 7-0. Credit: Christian Harsa | Special Projects Director
Ohio State jumped out early on offense in each of its three games during Opening Weekend and never looked back.
It was a total team effort with five players making their Ohio State debuts Friday. The entire lineup made key contributions which gave the Buckeyes three wins to begin the 2022 season.
Ohio State (3-0) opened its season with an 8-1 victory over Northern Illinois (1-3) in its lone game Friday. The Buckeyes had the upper hand twice more Saturday, securing an 8-5 win against Louisville (4-1) and 7-2 victory against Bethune-Cookman (1-3). The finale against FAU Sunday was canceled due to rain.
Graduate left-handed pitcher Lexie Handley got the nod in the first game against Northern Illinois and she did not disappoint in her first game as a Buckeye. She pitched a complete game in just 102 pitches. Additionally, she got the save in Saturday’s game against Louisville, finishing the weekend with a 0.68 ERA in 10 1/3 innings.
The offense experienced all-around success, with six different players driving in runs, led by sophomore outfielder Taylor Heckman, senior infielder Niki Carver and senior outfielder Meggie Otte, who each had five RBIs. The Buckeyes were also a perfect 11-for-11 in stolen base attempts.
Game 1
Ohio State got on the board with no problem in the top of the first inning, scoring four runs off of three hits. Freshman designated player Melina Wilkison and senior outfielder Jaycee Ruberti led off the inning with back-to-back walks, then junior catcher Sam Hackenbracht drove in Wilkison with a double down the left field line.
Two more doubles by Otte and Carver drove in three more runs, giving the Buckeyes a 4-0 lead after the first half of the inning.
The Buckeyes piled on twice more in the second frame. Otte struck again, scoring Wilkison and Hackenbracht off a two-run single, stretching the Buckeyes’ lead to 6-0 in the top of the second. The Huskies pulled sophomore right-hander Claire Norred after giving up six earned runs and replaced her with junior right-hander Delaney Ostrowski.
Handley took a no-hitter into the bottom of the sixth inning.
In the top of the seventh inning, Heckman pinch-hit for junior infielder Avery Clark, and hit a two-run home run, the first of her collegiate career, to give the Buckeyes an 8-0 lead.
Handley gave up two doubles and one run in the bottom of the seventh inning, but with no further damage, she helped Ohio State to its first win of the season in comfortable fashion. The southpaw had an impressive debut, finishing with 10 strikeouts, three hits and three walks allowed in seven innings pitched.
Game 2
The Buckeyes turned to sophomore right-hander Allison Smith for the start against Louisville Saturday. Smith had a 2.95 ERA in 132 2/3 innings pitched last season, leading the team with 12 wins and 134 strikeouts.
Both teams were scoreless in the first inning, however that changed in the top of the second when Clark hit a leadoff home run, giving the Buckeyes an early 1-0 lead. Two more runs were scored in the third inning by way of a two-run triple by Heckman, extending the lead to 3-0.
The Ohio State offense did not quiet down in the fourth inning, with three more runs being scored off the bats of Clark and Hackenbracht, who drove in junior infielder Mariah Rodriguez and Wilkison, making it 6-0 heading into the bottom of the fourth frame.
Freshman infielder Kami Kortokrax recorded her second collegiate hit in the fifth inning with a double down the left field line, then scored off a sacrifice bunt by Wilkison. Carver proceeded to crack her first home run of the season, scoring the Buckeyes’ final run and making it 8-0.
Smith had thrown a scoreless five innings before running into some trouble in the sixth. She gave up a two-run home run to Louisville graduate catcher Kendall Smith.
Handley relieved Smith with bases loaded and no outs in the bottom of the seventh inning. Shegave up an RBI single, a wild pitch that scored a run and a sacrifice fly, totaling three unearned runs. Handley eventually got the third out with no further damage, giving the Buckeyes their second consecutive victory and Smith her first win of the season.
Game 3
Sophomore right-hander Emily Ruck was on the mound for her first collegiate start in the second game Saturday against Bethune-Cookman.
The Buckeyes scored in the first inning once again. Wilkison led off with a walk, Heckman drove her in then scored on an RBI fielder’s choice by Clark, giving the Buckeyes a 2-0 lead.
The Buckeyes continued scoring in the third inning with an RBI single by Clark. Kortokrax caused commotion on the basepaths by stealing second base while Clark scored.
Rodriguez singled, stole second and third, then scored on a Hackenbracht double in the fourth inning. Sophomore infielder McKenzie Bump came in to pinch-run for Hackenbracht and scored on an Otte single, extending the lead to 6-0. Junior outfielder Tegan Cortelletti scored from third base on a wild pitch in the fifth inning to add one final run for the Buckeyes.
Ruck had a solid first outing as a starter, allowing two runs off three hits in 4 2/3 innings. Handley came on in relief once again in the bottom of the fifth inning, giving up one hit and one walk while striking out three and paving the way to another Ohio State victory. Ruck earned the win.
Ohio State will return to Florida next weekend at the The Spring Games in Leesburg for five games. The Buckeyes begin play Friday with a doubleheader against Butler and South Alabama beginning at 11 a.m. before playing Stetson and Liberty Saturday, which also begins at 11 a.m. They’ll finish up the weekend against North Carolina Sunday at 9 a.m.
