Badgers Take Weekend Opener in Madison, 8-4

Friday, April 12

Madison, Wisc.

6:00 PM

Ohio State

20-16, 0

Wisconsin

14-22, 0

Ohio State

Wisconsin

Badgers Take Weekend Opener in Madison, 8-4

4/12/2024 8:28:00 PM | Softball

Box Score

Buckeyes get another chance vs. Wisconsin tomorrow at 2 p.m. ET

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Wisconsin used a five-run fifth inning to break a 3-3 tie and pull away for an 8-4 victory over Ohio State on Friday evening at the Goodman Softball Complex on the campus of the University of Wisconsin. The loss drops Ohio State's record to 20-16 overall (2-8 Big Ten) while Wisconsin is now 14-22, 3-7 Big Ten.

The Buckeyes and Badgers get together again tomorrow in the middle game of this weekend's three game set. First pitch is set for 2 p.m.

The Short Story
Ohio State fought back from an early 2-0 deficit and take a 3-2 lead in the third inning, but after tying the game in the fourth Wisconsin went ahead for good in the fifth inning and didn't look back. The Buckeye offense did manage 11 hits – three of which came from Kami Kortokrax, who also drive in two runs – but Ohio State finished the night by leaving 10 runners on base.

Allison Smith got the start and struck out five batters over five innings. She moved into fifth place on the program's all-time strikeout list with 496. Emily Ruck worked the final inning in relief and allowed just one hit.

How The Runs Were Scored

Wisconsin jumped out to an early 2-0 lead thanks to a pair of solo home runs in the bottom of the first inning from Fiona Girardot and Emmy Wells.
Ohio State, however, was able to grab its first lead of the night in third inning, as a three-hit rally yielded three runs, keyed by a two-run single with the bases loaded off the bat of Kami Kortokrax.
That's the way the game would stay until the bottom of the fourth inning when Ellie Hubbard doubled off the left field wall and scored Brooke Kuffel, who had singled one batter earlier.
Kuffel would figure into another key hit in the bottom of the fifth, as she connected on a three-run home run just moments after Wisconsin took the lead back on a Payton Bannon two-RBI single. Kuffel's ensuing three-run home run gave Wisconsin an 8-3 lead.
Ohio State would load the bases in the top of the seventh inning and scored a run when Hannah Church was hit by a pitch to cut the lead to 8-4, but couldn't get any closer than that.

What's Next
Ohio State's series at Wisconsin continues tomorrow with a 2 p.m. game at the Goodman Softball Complex. It will be streamed live on BTN+ with live stats also available on the schedule page at OhioStateBuckeyes.com.

For the latest information on schedule adjustments, up-to-date news and results, follow Ohio State softball on X (formally Twitter) at @OhioStateSB.