Ohio State
26-13, 7-5
Illinois
23-19, 2-10
Home Runs Power Ohio State To Series-Opening Win at Illinois
4/14/2023 8:56:49 PM | Softball
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COLUMBUS, Ohio – Ohio State opened its weekend series at Illinois in a big way on Friday night, erupting for three early home runs and registering a 11-0 six-inning run-rule win over the Illini at Eichelberger Field in Urbana, Ill.
With the victory, the Buckeyes run their winning streak to five consecutive games and improve to 26-13 on the season (7-5 Big Ten). Illinois falls to 23-19 overall and 2-10 in Big Ten play.
The Short Story
Home runs in the first, second and third innings got Ohio State off to a quick 5-0 lead and the Buckeyes never looked back. Ohio State’s 10-hit attack was keyed by Kortokorax, who went 3-for-3 with a home run and two runs scored. Sam Hackenbracht also continued to swing a hot bat, as she finished 3-for-4 with a home run, double and three RBI.
Hannah Church hit her second home run in the last three games and also drove in three runs.
Allison Smith improved to 13-8 on the season and gave up just two hits in 5.0 innings of work. Freshman Lexi Paulsen came on the finish the game in the sixth inning.
How The Runs Were Scored
- Ohio State’s early offense was powered by two-out home runs: three of them, specifically, in back-to-back-to-back innings.
- Kami Kortokrax started it out with a two-out solo home run to center field off of starting pitcher Sidney Sickles. It was Kortokrax’s sixth home run of the season and her second in the last three games.
- One inning later, after Jaycee Ruberti worked a two-out walk, Hannah Church deposited a two-run home run to make the score 3-0 in favor of the Buckeyes.
- In the top half of the third inning, Sam Hackenbracht hit one to the exact same spot as Kortokrax – to straightaway centerfield – for her fifth homer of the season. It scored Kortokrax, who singled down the left field line.
- Two more runs were manufactured for Ohio State is the top of the fifth inning. Jaycee Ruberti worked a bases-loaded walk, scoring pinch runner Kirsten Eppele, and Hannah Church reached on an infield error that allowed Meggie Otte to score.
- The Buckeyes plated four runs in the top of the sixth inning, highlighted by RBI doubles off the bats of Wilkison and Hackenbracht. Ruberti and Church also drove in runs with bases loaded walks.
Buckeye This and That
- With three home runs and three doubles on the night, the Buckeyes have now registered 16 extra base hits in the last three games.
- They had 10 in Tuesday’s doubleheader sweep at Penn State and have a season slugging percentage of .499, which is third-best in the Big Ten and among the top 30 nationally.
- During Ohio State’s current five-game winning streak, Meggie Otte is batting .429 with four doubles. Teammate Sam Hackenbracht has a .400 average and .933 slugging percentage in that same five-game stretch with four extra base hits (two doubles, two home runs).
- In 12 Big Ten games, Hackenbracht’s numbers are even better: a .450 batting average, 15 RBI, 10 extra base hits and 11 runs scored.
What’s Next
Ohio State and Illinois play the middle game of their three-game series tomorrow. First pitch is scheduled for 2 p.m. ET (1 p.m. CT). The game will be streamed live on BTN+ and live stats are available on the softball schedule page at OhioStateBuckeyes.com.
For up to date information on Ohio State softball, including schedule updates, in-game score updates and recaps, visit @OhioStateSB.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Smith, Allison (13-8)
L: Sickels, S. (11-8)
Batting:
2B: Wilkison, Melina 1 ; Hackenbracht, Sam 1 ; Otte, Meggie 1
HR: Kortokrax, Kami 1 ; Hackenbracht, Sam 1 ; Church, Hannah 1
RBI: Wilkison, Melina 1 ; Kortokrax, Kami 1 ; Hackenbracht, Sam 3 ; Ruberti, Jaycee 1 ; Heckman, Taylor 1 ; Church, Hannah 3
Base Running:
RUNS: Rodriguez, Mariah 1 ; Wilkison, Melina 1 ; Kortokrax, Kami 3 ; Hackenbracht, Sam 2 ; Eppele, Kirsten 1 ; Otte, Meggie 1 ; Ruberti, Jaycee 1 ; Church, Hannah 1
HBP: Pack, Taylor 1
Base Running:
HBP: Meade, S. 1
