​MIAMI SOFTBALL

RedHawks open MAC Tourney title quest against Toledo

The top-seeded Miami RedHawks begin their quest for another MAC Softball Tournament championship Thursday when they face No. 4 seed Toledo at Firestone Stadium.

Toledo (26-21 overall) stroked 11 hits while holding CMU to four hits in a 6-3 Rockets victory in first round action Wednesday. The Chippewas were the only MAC team to defeat Miami this season. 

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MAC TOURNEY BRACKET HERE!!

EARLIER THIS YEAR
The RedHawks and Rockets met twice, with MU taking both games of an April 30 double header in Toledo. 

Miami won the first game, 8-0, with Madilyn Reeves going the distance. She held UT to just three hits. Miami, meanwhile, totaled 11 hits. Karli Spaid and Jenna Golembiewski clouted homers. 

After a two-run third, MU erupted for six runs in the fourth and claimed the 8-0 triumph in five innings. 

The second game went seven innings. Miami again had 11 hits, this time plating 10 runs. However, Toledo managed four runs, thanks mainly to a pair of homers by Jenna Kroll and Kendra VanderLugt, who drove in three Rockets. 

Miami, meanwhile, blasted four homers as Spaid, Holly Blaska, Sami Bewick and Reagan Bartholomew combined to drive in seven runs via long balls. 

Addy Jarvis tossed four innings, allowing four hits and four runs (3 earned) while picking up the win for Miami. Madilyn Reeves went three innings, holding UY to just one hit. 

Since losing to Miami, the Rockets have won four straight. They swept Buffalo 3-1, 2-1 and 5-4 to close the regular season. 

LATEST TOLEDO OUTING
-- In Wednesday's MAC tourney opener, the Rockets jumped on Central Michigan for four runs in the second inning. Kroll's homer to left was one of five hits in the frame. 
-- CMU got one run back in the fourth thanks to a UT error. However, the Rockets matched that with an Eli Enriquez RBI single to go up 5-1 after four. 
-- Alyssa Hollo's two-run homer in the sixth pulled CMU within two at 5-3. However, Enriquez tripled to left center, scoring Bracamonte with Toledo's six run to close scoring. 

ON THE YEAR
-- Toledo ranks second among MAC teams in batting (.303). However, the Rockets are ninth in runs scored (209) and home runs (21). They are fourth in slugging percentage. 
-- Toledo is third in pitching ERA (3.51) and third in team fielding (96.1)
-- Sidney Griffith (.380) and Enriquez (.379) lead UT batters.

MIAMI NOTES

-- The RedHawks (45-7, 26-1 MAC) are currently ranked No. 21 in the nation according to Softball America and No. 25 in this week’s ESPN poll. Miami had never been nationally ranked until this season.

-- Miami has not lost a contest in the MAC Tournament since 2019 and are a perfect 6-0 in MAC Postseason play under Coach Kirin Kumar.

-- The RedHawks lost just one conference game this year, falling to Central Michigan 9-5 (April 21) in the last of a three-game series. That broke a 23-game win skein. The RedHawks have since won nine straight. 

-- Over the past four years, Miami is 170-54-1 overall and 107-16 in MAC play. The RedHawks have won every MAC Regular Season title since 2019 and every MAC Tournament Championship since 2021.

-- The RedHawks feature the nation’s top offense (9.37 runs/game), having scored at least 10 runs 25 different times this year. Miami has also recorded a run-rule victory 23 times in 2024. Miami also leads the nation in home runs (154) and slugging percentage (.757). They are third nationally in batting average (.361) and second in on-base percentage (.461).

-- Karli Spaid and Jenna Golembiewski were named USA Softball Finalists for National Player of the Year. The award will be paired down to 10 finalists on May 15 and a top-3 on May. 20. The winner will be announced during the College World Series.

-- Spaid was recently named MAC Softball Player of the Year.

-- According to Head Coach Kirin Kumar, tournament success comes down to doing more of what her team has done all year. "They're playing and having fun and doing what they need to do . . . They just play their game. They know that if they play their game, its very hard for anybody to beat us. It doesn't matter what team (we play). 
She added, "No one gets up tight . . . They just know we can do it if we stick to our game plan.

-- According to Kumar, the RedHawks have set their own bar very high. "They want to do things that Miami Softball has never done . . . You've got to keep working (to do that). You can't be satisfied with what you did last year. 

Read more pre-tournament comments from coach Kumar HERE