Akron, Ohio - The No. 7 seed Toledo softball team upset No. 2 seed Kent State today in the Rockets' opening game of the Mid-American Conference tournament. Toledo won, 4-2, off three combined home runs from freshman Aubrey Reed and seniors Kaitlyn Bergman and Katie Cozy. Bergman's 23rd career dinger broke the Toledo home run record, putting her one ahead of 2008 graduate Leslie Stong.
 
"It feels amazing getting this win," Bergman said. "Just coming in being the seventh seed and being the underdog going up against a team like Kent State who always shows up for tournaments—it's just amazing.The whole team was working today, our defense looked spot on, and everyone was hitting up and down the lineup. It was just a great win overall."

Sophomore pitcher Erin Hunt and her defense were laser-focused from the beginning as they took the Golden Flashes down in order in the first three frames. In total, the Rockets retired the side in order five times en route to Hunt's 12th victory of the year. Hunt herself recorded five Ks and zero walks while only surrendering three hits. 

Head coach Joe Abraham credits his team's ability to get things done today against a talented KSU team to the confidence they built from almost taking down top teams like Florida State, UCF and Indiana earlier on in the regular-season.
 
"Playing some of those top-25 teams and playing them roughly even gave the team the confidence to know that we can play anybody," Abraham said. "We're pretty much on an even keel right now and are just going to come out ready to play tomorrow."
 
The Rockets' next game is tomorrow at 3:30 p.m. where they'll play No. 3 seed Ohio. 
 
How it happened

• Toledo's and Kent State's pitchers both made their presence known from the opening frame as KSU's Andrea Scali took all three Rockets down swinging and Hunt struck out two of her own.
• The Rockets opened the scoring in the second inning and took a 2-0 lead thanks to a huge effort from Reed. Sophomore Bekah Yenrick worked the count full and watched a fourth ball fly outside to reach first. Then, Reed worked to a 1-2 count before sending a screamer over the left-field fence to put her side up.
• The game then flipped to a pitchers duel as KSU went in order in the second, Toledo went 1-2-3 in the third, KSU went in order again in the third, and the Rockets left one on in the fourth.
• The Golden Flashes broke up the shutout in the bottom of the fourth as Kaitlyn Miller hit a leadoff homer to make the score 2-1 Toledo. KSU followed with a single and put another on the bags as Hunt hit a batter, but three flyouts left them on the bases.
• After another 1-2-3 inning from both sides in the fifth, Toledo added its final runs of the day in the top of frame No. 6. Following the leadoff batter striking out, Cozy homered to left field to make it 3-1 Toledo. Bergman then hit her record-breaking homer three pitches later to bring in another run and put the Rockets up 4-1.
• Kent State added a final run in the bottom of the inning as Bailey Brownfield left the park herself, but that would be it as the Rockets dealt away the side in the seventh to secure their spot in the winner's bracket.

 
 

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	R	H	E
UT	0	2	0	0	0	2	0	4	5	0
KENTST	0	0	0	1	0	1	0	2	3	0

W: Hunt (12-11)                      L: SCALI, Andrea (19-8)


Highlights from Toledo's victory against Kent State in the First Round of the MAC Tournament.


Head Coach Joe Abraham post-game.


Senior Kaitlyn Bergman post-game.