The rollercoaster that is the MSU softball team's Big Ten season continued this weekend as the Spartans split a four-game road set with Penn State and Ohio State.
The Buckeyes (23-18, 4-6 Big Ten) used the longball to defeat the Spartans (29-13, 8-5) in the opener, as two of Ohio State's three hits in the game were home runs.
MSU's best chances to score came in the first and seventh innings. But with two outs and the bases loaded each time, the Spartans failed to get a run across the plate.
"Obviously, we're disappointed," head coach Jacquie Joseph said. "We needed to come out of here a minimum 3-1 ,and we didn't."
Junior pitcher Jessica Beech played valiantly in defeat. In six innings, Beech struck out seven batters, walking just one.
In the nightcap, the Spartans needed just five innings to down the Buckeyes, as MSU bested Ohio State 8-0.
Sophomore right-hander Stephanie Christner moved to 7-5, allowing just two Buckeye hits. Christner also struck out three batters while walking only one.
"This was a good weekend for me," Christner said. " The defense played awesome behind me. I struggled for awhile, so this was a huge confidence booster for me."
The Spartans' scoring began in the bottom of the third inning when junior third base Brittney Green smashed a home run over the left field wall. A five-run fourth inning put the game out of reach, capped off by junior first base Natalie Furrow hitting a two-run home run over the right field wall. The dinger gave MSU a 3-0 lead on its way to an 8-0 five-inning win.
"She was throwing to me inside the whole game," Furrow said. "I just swung and got a hold of that one."
MSU let a huge lead slip through its hands in Friday's contest with Penn State.
After taking a 5-1 advantage into the bottom of the second inning, the Spartans were blanked for the next five stanzas. Penn State's bats, however, caught fire to the tune of 12 Nittany Lion hits on their way to a 6-5 win.
In six innings of work, Beech gave up 10 hits to the Nittany Lions, who entered the matchup hitting a horrendous .138 in Big Ten contests. She also gave up a season-high six runs, while fanning six and walking none.
"(Beech) was pretty disappointed after that game," Joseph said. "She could have pitched better. But it wasn't all on her. We made several defensive miscues. We completely threw that game away."
The Spartans fortunes changed for the better in Saturday's game in State College, Pa.
With the teams knotted at three in the bottom half of the sixth inning and two outs, Furrow smacked a double to right-center field, driving in senior center fielder Sandy Lewis and senior shortstop Margaret Schick. It secured a 5-3 victory for MSU and allowing Christner's sixth win.
With the conference season drawing to a close, Joseph cited one thing as the main component of her team's conference championship hopes.
"The bottom line is we have to be consistent in pitching, fielding and hitting," she said. "We have got to do better on a more consistent basis if we want to contend."
