ROCHESTER, Mich. — The Oakland softball program closes its eight-game homestead with a pair of doubleheaders against Cleveland State on Friday, April 9, and Saturday, April 10, at the Oakland Softball Field. The opening doubleheader will begin at 2 p.m. and stream on ESPN3, while Saturday's doubleheader is set for a noon start. Live stats will be provided for all four games.
Spectators will be permitted in the raised berm area beyond the outfield fence. Spectators are required to practice social distancing and to wear face coverings/masks when watching the game.
Click here to view spectator seating.
* It is recommended for spectators to bring chairs, blankets, and water bottles to each game. Bleacher seating and concessions will not be available due to COVID-19 protocols.
WEEKEND INFORMATION
April 9 | 2 p.m. | Watch | Live Stats
April 9 | 4 p.m. est. | Watch | Live Stats
April 10 | Noon | Live Stats
April 10 | 2 p.m. est. | Live Stats
FIRST PITCH
Kahlaijah Dean from the Oakland women's basketball team will throw out the ceremonial first pitch on Friday. The junior guard became the 29th player in program history to reach 1,000 career points and recently earned Horizon League First Team honors.
SCOUTING THE VIKINGS
Cleveland State is 9-19 overall and 4-12 in Horizon League play. The Vikings opened the year with a promising 8-10 record but have lost eight of their last nine games, including four in a row. Oakland and CSU have played four-game series against IUPUI and Northern Kentucky, where the Golden Grizzlies are 6-2 against those two opponents compared to a 2-6 clip for the Vikings.
Senior outfielder Sydney Bajusz has paced the offense by hitting .319 with nine doubles, one triple, five home runs, and 19 RBI in 28 starts. Freshman outfielder Kiera Frascone has contributed on the base paths with a team-high 11 stolen bases. The pitching duo of Hannah Griffin and Taylor Betz have combined for seven wins and eight complete games in 20 starts. Griffin leads the team with a 3.44 ERA and 61.0 innings pitched, while Betz has struck out a team-best 42 batters.
ALL-TIME VS. CSU
The Golden Grizzlies lead 13-8 in the all-time series. The programs last met during the 2019 season, when Oakland took two out of the three matchups. Jessie Munson provided walk-off hits in both victories with Shannon Carr and Rachel Zerona scoring the game-winning runs. Senior pitcher Lauryn Debono tossed a complete game in the series finale win, allowing just three runs and one walk while striking out five batters in 8.0 innings of work.
WEEKEND RECAP
OU is coming off its first sweep of the 2021 campaign and third Horizon League series win in four tries, as the group won four in a row over Green Bay. The Golden Grizzlies swept their opening doubleheader with a 4-2 come-from-behind victory in game one, followed by a commanding 8-1 win in game two. Oakland closed the series with another two wins by final scores of 10-2 and 4-2.
RECORD WATCH
Senior shortstop Jamie Squires sits third in program history with 93 RBI. She has an opportunity to break the record against CSU, as current graduate assistant Brittney Miller is the program leader with 97 career RBI. Last weekend, Squires moved into second in school history in career home runs with 19. Sarah Hartley ('16 alum) ranks first in the category with 20 career longballs. Redshirt junior third baseman Madison Jones is close behind Squires with 19 career home runs, good for third in school history. Jones is also tied with Cammie Knorr ('06 alum) in career triples with 10.
CONFERENCE STANDINGS
Oakland is in third place in the Horizon League standings at 11-5. Youngstown State leads the HL with a 13-3 record, while preseason favorite UIC sits second at 13-5. The top four seeds after the regular season will advance to the 2021 Horizon League Softball Championship from May 13-15 at the site of the No. 1 seed.
FEELS LIKE 2015
OU's 11-5 conference record is its second-best start through 16 games since joining the Horizon League in 2014. The Golden Grizzlies raced out to a 12-4 HL record in 2015 and proceeded to win the Horizon League Championship to advance to the NCAA Tournament.
THRIVING IN THE CIRCLE
Sophomore pitcher Sydney Campbell is 8-2 with a 1.83 ERA in 68.2 innings of work. She ranks second in the HL in wins, ERA, and strikeout-to-walk ratio (5.17), while also holding top-five conference marks in shutouts (1, T-4th), and complete games (7, T-5th). Furthermore, Campbell ranks seventh in NCAA Division I and first in the HL in walks allowed per seven innings (0.61). She has walked no batters in 10 of her 15 appearances.
PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Redshirt junior first baseman Cammie Brummitt and Campbell have racked Horizon League awards through five weeks of play. Brummitt earned League Player of the Week after hitting .412 with one triple, three home runs, seven RBI, and six runs scored in the IUPUI series. Campbell went 2-0 with a 1.17 ERA, one complete game, and eight strikeouts in 12.0 innings of work in the Green Bay series en route to earning League Pitcher of the Week.
3/16/21 - Cammie Brummitt - HLSB Player of the Week (1st of career)
4/6/21 - Sydney Campbell - HLSB Pitcher of the Week (1st of career)
CAREER DAY FOR KRIZKA
Sophomore catcher Jen Krizka blasted three-run home runs in consecutive at-bats in Oakland's 10-2 victory against Green Bay (4/3). She finished the contest with a career-high six RBI. Krizka's reached two homers for the second time in her collegiate career, as she achieved the feat versus Appalachian State last season.
GRIFFITH CAN RAKE
Junior Lauren Griffith ranks first on the team and third in the Horizon League with a .397 batting average. She has garnered multiple hits in eight games, including a season-high three hits on three different occasions. In conference play, Griffith has batted an improved .418 with six doubles, three home runs, and 12 RBI. The Grove City, Ohio native was especially impressive in the Green Bay series, as she batted .538 with two doubles, two home runs, and five RBI.
DO-IT-ALL JONES
Jones has batted .353 with seven doubles, two triples, three home runs, 11 RBI, and 22 runs scored in 20 starts. In the conference rankings, she holds top-10 marks in runs (T-2nd), triples (3rd), doubles (T-4th), slugging percentage (.647, 4th), stolen bases (9, 4th), and total bases (44, 6th). The Romeo, Mich., native was named United Wholesale Mortgage Student-Athlete of the Week after hitting a team-high .583 (7-for-12) with four extra-base hits, two RBI, and seven runs scored in OU's series sweep over Green Bay.
HITTING IS CONTAGIOUS
The Golden Grizzlies rank first in the Horizon League with a .288 batting average. Griffith (.397), Jones (.353), Zerona (.315), and Krizka (.305) are currently batting above .300 on the season.
OFFENSIVE EXCELLENCE
In conference-only action, OU holds top-three marks in batting average (.305, 2nd), home runs (15, 2nd), slugging percentage (.481, 2nd), runs (91, 3rd), and hits (140, 3rd). Through 16 games, the Golden Grizzlies have scored five or more runs nine times.
GETTING IT DONE ON DEFENSE
Oakland has showcased the top fielding percentage (.966) among HL programs in conference-only action. The Golden Grizzlies opened the season with multiple errors for three games in a row. However, the squad has committed multiple errors just three times in the last 17 games, including no errors in six games.
HOME COOKIN'
Oakland has gone 7-1 at home this season with three wins against Northern Kentucky and four wins against Green Bay. The home win total is tied for the most in a single season since 2015.
NEWCOMERS
OU welcomed six newcomers — all freshmen — to the program last fall. Four of the six freshmen come from Michigan. The other two newcomers arrive on campus from Ohio and Indiana.
#HLSB PRESEASON POLL
The Golden Grizzlies were picked fourth in the Horizon League Softball preseason coaches poll. Oakland was one of two teams (UIC) to receive a first-place vote in the poll. UIC was projected to win the conference with 99 points and nine of the 10 first-place votes.
