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Western Michigan University Athletics

Softball Holds Off Miami in Dramatic 5-4 Victory, Continues On in MAC Tounament

Softball Kristin Keirns, associate director of athletic media relations

Softball Holds Off Miami in Dramatic 5-4 Victory, Continues On in MAC Tounament

AKRON, Ohio- No. 5 seed Western Michigan fought back from 2-0 and 3-2 deficits and held on for a 5-4 victory over No. 3 Miami Friday, eliminating the RedHawks from the 2015 Mid-American Conference Tournament.

After trailing 3-2, Western Michigan rallied for three runs in the top of the sixth, sparked by a two-run double by junior second baseman Melissa Palmer.

The Broncos took a 5-3 lead into the bottom of the seventh. Freshman reliever Anissa Sanchez quickly recorded two outs in the inning with a pair of infield pop flys and then things got dicey.

A hit batter and two RedHawk singles on the left side of the infield cut the margin to 5-4 and put the winning run on second base for Miami. Sanchez walked the next RedHawk she faced to load the bases and then was lifted for junior Allyson Kus. Kus threw a first pitch ball and then got Bree Lipscomb to fly out to center field to clinch the Bronco victory.

Kus began the day in the circle for the third straight game. She handed the ball off the Sanchez in the bottom of the fifth and the game tied 2-2. Sanchez would go on to record the win, improving her record to 6-5 on the year. Kus got the save on the re-entry, her third of the year.

Palmer was a perfect 3-for-3 from the plate, with a triple, a single and the two-run double. It was her second triple of the tournament, also hammering a three-bagger yesterday in a 10-2 win over No. 8 Ohio.

Sophomore third baseman Kelsea Cichocki was big at the plate as well, blasting a two-run home run that knotted the game at 2-2 in the top of the fourth. She drove in the third run during the rally in the sixth, which proved to be the winning run, with a sac fly to center field. Cichocki's home run was her fifth of the year.

Western Michigan (23-25) advances in the one-loss bracket and will face the winner of today's #1 Kent State vs. #7 Akron game tonight at 6 p.m. The winner of that contest advances to Championship Saturday.

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Players Mentioned

Allyson Kus

#16 Allyson Kus

P
6' 2"
Freshman
Melissa Palmer

#22 Melissa Palmer

UT
5' 6"
Freshman
Kelsea Cichocki

#21 Kelsea Cichocki

IF
5' 9"
Freshman
Anissa Sanchez

#8 Anissa Sanchez

P
5' 7"
Freshman

Players Mentioned

Allyson Kus

#16 Allyson Kus

6' 2"
Freshman
P
Melissa Palmer

#22 Melissa Palmer

5' 6"
Freshman
UT
Kelsea Cichocki

#21 Kelsea Cichocki

5' 9"
Freshman
IF
Anissa Sanchez

#8 Anissa Sanchez

5' 7"
Freshman
P