TOLEDO, Ohio – Toledo exploded offensively and freshman
Sophia Knight threw her first collegiate shutout in the Rockets' 11-0 run-rule victory over Ball State on Friday afternoon at Scott Park.
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Knight allowed four hits and one walk and fanned seven batters in five innings.
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Sophomore
Jenna Kroll paced Toledo's 12-hit attack with three hits and two doubles. Sophomore
Lauren Erickson and senior
Aleah Marra also collected two hits.
Kroll drove in a team-high three runs, with
Erickson,
Marra and freshman
Maris Barbato each collecting two RBIs.
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Toledo scored early with three runs in the first before breaking the game open with six runs in the third. The Rockets closed out the scoring with two runs in the fourth.
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"We put it all together today," head coach
Joe Abraham said. "
Sophia Knight was outstanding, as she has been a lot lately. We got key hits and hit throughout the batting order. We've been on the verge of busting out, and it was just a matter of time."
Abraham said he was also pleased to see the team's underclassmen continue to improve.
"We are starting to see people like
Maris Barbato and
Sidney Griffith get more and more comfortable in the lineup," Abraham said, "
Lauren Erickson is showing she is one of the best players in the MAC. We have the potential to be great, and I think we'll continue to play well down the stretch."
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The Rockets and Cardinals will wrap up their weekend series with a 1:00 p.m. doubleheader tomorrow.
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HOW IT HAPPENED
- Sophomore Jenna Kroll drilled a two-run double to left field to open the scoring in the first.
- Toledo took a 3-0 lead later in the inning when sophomore Sidney McKeever came home on the front end of a double steal.
- The Rockets blew the game open with a six-run third inning. Sophomore Lauren Erickson's two-run homer opened the scoring.
- Kroll followed with an RBI double, and senior Aleah Marra's single increased UT's lead to 7-0.
- Freshman Maris Barbato closed out the scoring in the third with a two-run blast, the first home run of her collegiate career.
- Marra and junior Riley Mohr collected RBI singles in the fourth to account for Toledo's final margin of victory.