MUNCIE, Ind. – In the Western Michigan softball team's return to the Ball State Softball Stadium after four years away, the Broncos won all three games over the Ball State Cardinals.

WMU bounced back in a big way this weekend with three commanding wins over Ball State. The Brown and Gold opened the series with a 5-2 win on Saturday afternoon before taking the second game of the doubleheader 4-1. Western Michigan then exploded on offense in the final game of the series with four home runs in the 13-3 victory to sweep the Cardinals.

Senior catcher Tristen Head had her best series at the plate so far this season. Head went four of seven from the batters box for an average of .571 while setting a new career high with two home runs on Sunday. Four other Broncos were .500 or better at the plate including infielders Caitlin Tighe and Bella Duncan along with outfielder Megan Malartsik and Jadeyn Merrill. Tighe had the most hits of any WMU batter with five in nine at bats while also scoring a team-high five runs.

In the circle, freshman Ava Geyer only barely led freshman Hannah Potts in two appearances on the weekend. Geyer spent 8.0 innings pitching for a 1-0 record, a 1.75 ERA with nine hits, two earned runs, three walks, and four strikeouts. The freshman also pitched her eighth complete game of the season on Saturday afternoon. Potts spent more time in the circle for the Brown and Gold with 11.0 innings pitched, allowing 11 hits, three earned runs, and four walks, while striking out 13 batters. Potts ended the series with a 2-0 record in two games started and a 1.92 ERA.

GAME 1
The weekend series began with Ball State taking a first inning lead after a lead-off triple. The Cardinals didn't keep the lead for long as Western Michigan batted through its lineup in the top of the second inning. The Broncos had three hits, two walks, a fielder's choice, and a hit by pitch in the half inning to score five runs.

After taking a four-run lead in the second inning, WMU only allowed one more run to score from Ball State at the very end of the game as the Cardinals tried to mount a seventh inning comeback. BSU had two hits and two walks to score a second run in four at-bats. But the Brown and Gold defense shut down the Cardinals, holding on for the 5-2 opening win.

GAME 2
In the second game of the day, it was a quiet opening inning for both sides. It didn't stay quiet past the first inning as Western Michigan again had an explosive second inning on offense. The Broncos added four more hits in the series in the top of the second as Tighe hit the first home run of the series while Head, Malartsik, and Duncan added hits of their own.

WMU scored three runs on its four hits in the top of the second while keeping Ball State to only a single hit in the same inning. Neither team scored over the next three innings as the Brown and Gold added a hit and the Cardinals had four hits with six runners left on base. Western Michigan added its last run in the second game of the doubleheader in the top of the sixth.

A lead-off double for Tighe became a fourth run two at-bats later. The double was followed by a single for Head and a single for Malartsik, scoring Tighe with no outs on the board. The Broncos got another runner on the basepaths, but then hit into a double play to end the half inning. Ball State broke the shutout in the bottom of the sixth after a walk and two straight singles. WMU got out of the inning as Head threw a laser from behind the plate to Tighe to catch a Cardinal trying to steal second base. Both sides went down in order in the seventh, leading to the 4-1 Game 2 final score.

GAME 3
The Brown and Gold continued their offensive onslaught in the third and final game of the weekend on Sunday afternoon. Western Michigan got out to an early lead as Tighe had her second home run in as many days for a 1-0 advantage. The Broncos were then able to add another run in the second as center fielder Emily Lampela was hit by a pitch to begin the inning. Lampela then scored a run as third baseman Hannah Herman put a double into right center.

WMU continued to add on the runs in the third inning as its first two batters reached base. The Brown and Gold's next two batters went down in order, but Western Michigan was able to put together a two-out rally. The Broncos next three hitters all reached base, scoring two more runs for a 4-0 advantage.

Ball State cut WMU's lead in half in the bottom half of the inning. The Cardinals had three hits with one that went into deep left field, allowing two runners to score. The Brown and Gold were able to answer right back in the top of the fourth with their biggest offensive inning of the weekend. Western Michigan scored seven runs on six hits as the team sent 10 batters to the plate.

Duncan and Jordan Smith put singles into the field while outfielders Rylee O'Brien and Lampela had back-to-back doubles for one of the runs. But it was home runs from Head and Merrill that put the Broncos well ahead of Ball State. Both homers scored three runs each, giving WMU a commanding 11-2 lead midway through the fourth inning. Potts added her career 99^th and 100^th strikeouts in the bottom of the sixth to put the Brown and Gold in position for a run-rule victory.

Western Michigan wasn't quite done scoring yet as Jordan Smith led off the fifth with a double. Pinch runner Corinne Martz was brought home shortly after as Head hit her second home run of the game past the center field fence for a 13-2 score. The Broncos added one more hit in the fifth on a double from Lampela but didn't bring a 14^th run across home plate.

The Cardinals were able to score another run in the bottom of the fifth with a single, a double, and a fielder's choice. But Ball State wasn't able to score any other runs as WMU took the 13-3 mercy rule win to sweep the series. This weekend's sweep was the first MAC sweep for the Brown and Gold since April 30, 2024, and the first three game conference sweep since April 13 and 14 of 2024.

Improving to a 21-19 overall record and a 10-8 MAC record, Western Michigan sits sixth in the conference. The Broncos are scheduled for a midweek game on the road at Valparaiso on Wednesday evening. Weather permitting, WMU will take on the Beacons at 5:00 p.m. EST on April 15 at Valpo Softball Complex.