PAW PRINTS: The Week Forward in Ohio Athletics

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ATHENS, Ohio – It’s MAC Tournament Week, Bobcats. Let the insanity start! Check out all the things that is forward for Ohio Athletics on this week’s Paw Prints, introduced by Memorial Health System.

MEN’S BASKETBALL
March 12 / 2026 MAC Tournament Quarterfinals / vs. No. 3 Kent State / Cleveland, Ohio / Rocket Arena / 6:30 p.m. ET / ESPN+ / Watch / Live Stats / Listen / Ohio Notes / Kent State Notes / Digital Guide / Tournament Central / Bracket / Tickets 
March 13 / 2026 MAC Tournament Semifinals / vs. No. 2 Akron or No. 7 Buffalo / Cleveland, Ohio / Rocket Arena / 7:30 p.m. ET / CBSSN / Watch / Live Stats / Listen / Ohio Notes / TBA Notes / Digital Guide / Tournament Central / Bracket / Tickets 
March 14 / 2026 MAC Tournament Semifinals / TBA / Cleveland, Ohio / Rocket Arena / 8 p.m. ET / ESPN2 / Watch / Live Stats / Listen / Ohio Notes / TBA Notes / Digital Guide / Tournament Central / Bracket / Tickets 

The sixth-seeded Ohio males’s basketball group (15-16, 9-9 MAC) opens play on the 2026 Mid-American Conference Tournament, introduced by Credit Union 1, on Thursday, March 12, once they tackle No. 3 Kent State (23-8, 14-4 MAC) for a quarterfinals matchup inside Rocket Arena. Tip-off in Cleveland is ready for about 6:30 p.m. ET, or half-hour following the conclusion of recreation three, and could be seen on ESPN+. With a win, the Bobcats would advance to the MAC Semifinals on Friday, March 13 at 7:30 p.m. ET to tackle the winner of No. 2 Akron (26-5, 17-1 MAC) and No. 7 Buffalo (17-14, 7-11 MAC) on CBS Sports Network. The 2026 MAC Championship recreation will happen on Saturday, March 14. Tip-off is ready for 8 p.m. ET inside Rocket Arena and could be seen on ESPN2. 

The Bobcats’ matchup will also be heard on the Ohio Sports Network from Learfield, introduced by Holzer Health System. Jason Toy begins his second season on the mic for the Bobcats and will likely be joined by veteran and will likely be joined by veteran faculty basketball analyst Dave Cecutti. WXTQ (Power 105) in Athens returns because the 11-station community’s flagship and could be heard on the Varsity Network App. 

The Bobcats enter the match because the six seed and are coming off a 0-2 week that noticed the Bobcats take No. 19 Miami into time beyond regulation Friday evening in Athens. Senior guard Jackson Paveletzke put up monster numbers for the Bobcats through the ultimate week of the common season. Overall, Paveletzke averaged 30.5 factors, 2.5 rebounds and 6.5 assists per recreation. He went 19-of-32 (.452) from the sector, 4-of-11 (.364) from three and 19-of-23 (.826) from the road. He additionally solely recorded three complete turnovers on the week. On March 6 in opposition to No. 19 Miami, Paveletzke led the Bobcats in a scoring masterclass. Paveletzke scored a career-high 37 factors, going 12-of-25 from the sector, 3-of-6 from three and 10-of-12 from the road. He additionally grabbed two rebounds and dished out a game-high six assists within the time beyond regulation thriller in Athens.

Kent State enters the match because the three seed after ending the season 23-8 total and 14-4 in MAC play. The Flashes are coming off an 86-78 win at house in opposition to Western Michigan final Friday to shut out the season. Delrecco Gillespie leads Kent State with 18.1 factors and 11.2 rebounds a recreation, whereas capturing 52.5 % from the sector and 78.6 % from the road. Morgan Safford provides 14.1 factors and 5.7 rebounds a recreation, whereas capturing 40.6 % from the sector and 79.5 % from the road, whereas Rob Whaley, Jr. averages 11.4 factors a recreation, whereas capturing 51.5 % from the sector. Ohio and Kent State met in January in Kent, Ohio, with the Bobcats falling, 72-57. 

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
March 11 / 2026 MAC Tournament Quarterfinals / vs. No. 4 Central Michigan / Cleveland, Ohio / Rocket Arena / 1:30 p.m. ET / ESPN+ / Watch / Live Stats / Listen / Ohio Notes / CMU Notes / Digital Guide / Tournament Central / Bracket / Tickets 
March 13 / 2026 MAC Tournament Semifinals / vs. No. 1 Miami or No. 8 Kent State / Cleveland, Ohio / Rocket Arena / 10 a.m. ET / ESPN+ / Watch / Live Stats / Listen / Ohio Notes / TBA Notes / Digital Guide / Tournament Central / Bracket / Tickets 
March 14 / 2026 MAC Tournament Semifinals / TBA / Cleveland, Ohio / Rocket Arena / 11 a.m. ET / CBSSN / Watch / Live Stats / Listen / Ohio Notes / TBA Notes / Digital Guide / Tournament Central / Bracket / Tickets 

The No. 5 Ohio girls’s basketball group (17-12, 11-7 MAC) opens play on the 2026 Mid-American Conference Tournament, introduced by Credit Union 1, on Wednesday, March 11, when the Bobcats tackle No. 4 Central Michigan (18-11, 12-6). Tip-off is ready for about 1:30 p.m. ET, or half-hour following the conclusion of recreation one, inside Rocket Arena and could be seen on ESPN+. With a win, Ohio will face off with the winner of No. 1 Miami (25-6, 16-2 MAC) and No. 8 Kent State (15-15, 9-9 MAC) on Friday, March 13 at 10 a.m. ET on ESPN+. The 2026 MAC Championship recreation will likely be held on Saturday, March 14 at 11 a.m. ET on CBS Sports Network. 

Ohio enters the match because the fifth seed and is coming off a 2-0 week that noticed Ohio take down Eastern Michigan on the street, earlier than defeating MAC-leading Miami, 77-62, Saturday evening within the Convo. Graduate scholar guard Elli Garnett led Ohio girls’s basketball through the ultimate week of the 2025-26 common season. Overall, Garnett averaged 13.0 factors, 10.5 rebounds and 1.5 assists. She shot 50 % from the sector, 41.7 % from three and was 5-of-6 from the road. She additionally recorded three steals and three blocks. On Saturday in opposition to Miami on her senior evening, Garnett led the Bobcats with a season-high 21 factors along with a game-high 11 rebounds, marking the fifth double-double of her profession. The graduate scholar completed 7-for-11 from the sector, 4-for-7 from the arc and 3-for-4 from the road. Garnett added two assists and two steals, serving to the Bobcats to the 77-62 victory. 
 
Central Michigan involves Cleveland on the fourth seed after ending the season 18-11 total and 12-6 in MAC play. The two groups met as soon as this season on Dec. 31 in Mount Pleasant, Mich., with Ohio defeating CMU, 85-83 in time beyond regulation. Madi Morson leads CMU with 20.0 factors and 4.0 rebounds a recreation, whereas capturing 45.8 % from the sector and 83.3 % from the road. Ayanna-sarai Darrington provides 14.7 factors and seven.1 rebounds a recreation, whereas capturing 56.2 % from the sector and 66.1 % from the road. 

SWIM AND DIVE
March 11th of September / at 2026 NCAA Zone C Diving Championships / Ypsilanti, Mich. / Jones Natatorium  / Day 1: 1 p.m. ET; Day 2: 1 p.m. ET / Day 3: 5:15 p.m. ET/ YouTube / Watch / Live Results 
March 12-14 / at 2026 CSCAA National Invitational Championship / Ocala, Fla. / FAST Facility /Prelims 9:30 a.m. ET; Finals: 6 p.m. ET. / Schedule of Events

The Ohio swim and dive group is again in motion for 2 occasions this week. First, three members of the Ohio diving squad head to Ypsilanti, Mich., March 11th of September for the 2026 NCAA Zone C Diving Championships. The three-day occasion is hosted by Eastern Michigan inside Jones Natatorium. The occasion begins on Monday, March 9, at 1 p.m. for the 1-meter dive. On Tuesday, March 10, the 3-meter occasion is scheduled to start at 1 p.m. ET, whereas the platform is scheduled for Wednesday, March 11, at 5:15 p.m. ET. All three days will likely be streamed on YouTube. Later within the week, the remainder of the Ohio swimming and diving squad will return to motion later this week on the 2026 CSCAA National Invitational, March 12-14 on the FAST Facility in Ocala, Fla. 

Junior Astrid Pichardo (Guanajuato, Mexico) will symbolize the Bobcats in each the 1-meter and 3-meter dive. Junior Stephanie Balthaser (Delaware, Ohio) will be part of Pichardo within the 1-meter, whereas freshman Bella Basford (Cincinnati, Ohio) will compete within the 3-meter occasion. Pichardo is coming off a stellar end on the 2026 MAC Championships two weeks in the past, ending seventh within the 3-meter dive with a rating of 261.10, and sixth within the 1-meter dive with a rating of 247.85. In order to advance to the 2026 NCAA Swim and Dive Championships subsequent week, Pichardo is trying to end a minimum of tenth within the 1-meter and seventh within the 3-meter. Balthaser is making her first journey to NCAA Zones and is coming off an 18th-place end within the 3-meter occasion at MACs, ending with a rating of 227.05.  Basford can be making her first journey to Zones. In her first MAC Championships, Basford positioned fifth within the 1-meter comfort ultimate, thirteenth total, with a rating of 247.85. Meanwhile, within the 3-meter occasion, she positioned third within the comfort ultimate and eleventh total, ending with a rating of 251.50. 

The full Ohio swim and dive group is coming off a second-place end on the 2026 MAC Championships two weeks in the past. The Bobcats noticed junior Zita Szoke and senior Casadie DiBetta punch their tickets to the 2026 NCAA Championships subsequent week in Georgia. Following the meet, Szoke and DiBetta earned First Team All-MAC honors, whereas freshman Juliette Daigneault, senior Emily Ellsworth, freshman Katrina Kollin, and junior Melanie Schweikert earned Second Team All-MAC honors.

MEN’ GOLF
March 11th of September / at 2026 Donald Ross Collegiate / Southern Pines, N.C / Mid Pines Inn & Golf Club / 8:05 a.m. ET / YouTube / Watch / Live Results 

The Ohio males’s golf group is again in motion for the 2026 Donald Ross Collegiate, March 11th of September in Southern Pines, N.C. The three-day occasion will happen on the Mid Pines Inn and Golf Club, with every day starting at 8:05 a.m. ET for 18 holes. The occasion will likely be streamed on YouTube. 

Twenty groups are at this yr’s occasion, together with: St. John’s, Richmond, James Madison, George Washington, Georgetown, Ohio, VCU, George Mason, EKU, Towson, Saint Joe’s, Robert Morris, St. Bonaventure, BGSU, Dayton, Old Dominion, South Dakota, Loyola-Chicago, St. Thomas and William & Mary. 

On the course for the Bobcats this week is senior Carson Trafford, freshman Rylan Hall, senior Will Kates, senior Nathaniel Gray Lamont and senior Jack O’Donnell. 

Ohio final competed Feb. 9-10 on the Bentwater Intercollegiate in Montgomery, Texas. The Bobcats positioned seventh total, whereas Lamont led the way in which for the Bobcats, firing a two underneath par 69 within the opening spherical, adopted up by a 3 underneath 68 in Monday’s second spherical to carry a solo lead after 36 holes of the match at -5. Gray Lamont noticed crimson for a lot of the day, carding 11 complete birdies and an eagle throughout 36 holes. Lamont shot 76 in Tuesday’s third spherical to complete at a fair par 213 for the match, and good for a T-4 end.

BASEBALL
March 10 / at Austin Peay / Clarksville, Tenn. / Raymond C. Hand Park / 5 p.m. ET / ESPN+ / Watch / Live Stats 
March 11 / at Austin Peay / Clarksville, Tenn. / Raymond C. Hand Park / 2 p.m. ET / ESPN+ / Watch / Live Stats 
March 13 / vs Western Michigan / Athens, Ohio / Bob Wren Stadium / 3 p.m. ET / ESPN+ / Watch / Live Stats / Tickets 
March 14 / vs Western Michigan / Athens, Ohio / Bob Wren Stadium / 2 p.m. ET / ESPN+ / Watch / Live Stats / Tickets 
March 15 / vs Western Michigan / Athens, Ohio / Bob Wren Stadium / 1 p.m. ET / ESPN+ / Watch / Live Stats / Tickets 

The Ohio baseball group (3-13, 1-2 MAC) is again in motion for 5 video games this week, beginning on Tuesday, March 10, when Ohio heads to Clarksville, Tenn., to tackle Austin Peay (7-8). First pitch is ready for five p.m. ET at Raymond C. Hand Park and could be seen on ESPN+. Ohio and Austin Peay are again in motion on Wednesday, March 11, for the second recreation of their sequence, which is ready to start at 2 p.m. ET on ESPN+. Ohio returns to Athens March 13-15 for a three-game MAC sequence in opposition to Western Michigan (6-8, 2-1 MAC). Friday’s first pitch is ready for 3 p.m. ET at Bob Wren Stadium, with Saturday scheduled for two p.m. ET and Sunday’s finale at 1 p.m. ET. All three video games can be seen on ESPN+.  

Ohio is coming off a 2-4 weekend that noticed Ohio defeat Dayton and Northern Illinois. Against NIU on March 6 in Ohio’s 14-7 win over the Huskies to open MAC play, junior outfielder Cameron Boyd led the Bobcats with 4 RBI, together with a house run. Senior infielder Dylan Shepherd was the opposite Bobcat to homer Friday evening, tallying three complete RBI. Sophomore right-handed pitcher Luke Bryant bought the beginning for the Bobcats, going two and two-thirds innings, permitting 4 earned runs and three hits whereas tallying one strikeout. Freshman righty Mason Gass was credited with the win after pitching a bulk of the innings out of the bullpen for Ohio, ending 4 and one-third frames, permitting two runs and tallying six strikeouts. 

Austin Peay is at the moment 7-8 total and is coming off a sequence break up in opposition to Utah Tech final weekend in St. George, Utah. Zion Taylor leads Austin Peay with a .386 batting common, recording 22 hits, seven doubles, one house run and 9 RBI. On the mound, Kade Shatwell has a 1.82 ERA, permitting six runs in 24.2 innings, whereas hanging out 23. 

Western Michigan is 6-8 total and 2-1 in MAC play after taking the three-game sequence over Akron final weekend. WMU will face off with Michigan on Tuesday earlier than heading to Athens this weekend. At the plate, Tanner Mally leads the Broncos with a .551 batting common, recording 27 hits, with 4 doubles, one triple and 5 RBI, whereas scoring 18 runs. Michael Maloney leads WMU with 4 house runs and 18 RBI. On the mound, Ty McKinstry had a 5.14 ERA in three video games, permitting eight runs in 14 innings, whereas hanging out 13. 

SOFTBALL
March 13 / at Toledo / Toledo, Ohio / Scott Park / 3 p.m. ET / ESPN+ / Watch / Live Stats
March 14 / at Toledo / Toledo, Ohio / Scott Park / 1 p.m. ET / Live Stats
March 14 / at Toledo / Toledo, Ohio / Scott Park / 3 p.m. ET / Live Stats

The Ohio softball group (16-8, 0-0 MAC) opens MAC play this weekend once they head to Toledo, Ohio, March 13-14 to tackle Toledo (3-18, 0-0- MAC). First pitch on Friday, March 13 is ready for 3 p.m. ET at Scott Park and could be seen on ESPN+. Saturday’s (March 14) doubleheader with the Rockets is scheduled to start at 1 p.m. ET, with recreation two to observe. 

Ohio is coming off a 4-1 weekend on the 2026 Catamount Classic hosted by Western Carolina. While there, Ohio defeated Penn and Robert Morris twice, however fell to host WCU. Ohio was led on the plate this week by graduate scholar Rylee McDaniel, who hit .545 with six hits, one double, two house runs, two RBI and 5 runs scored. She recorded a 1.182 slugging proportion, whereas registering a .583 on-base proportion and stole one base. In the sector at shortstop, McDaniel didn’t commit an error whereas recording 13 assists. Senior Belle Hummel hit .500 this weekend, with 9 hits, two doubles, one triple, eight runs scored and 4 RBI. She drew two walks and had two stolen bases. 

Toledo is at the moment 3-18 total and is coming off a 2-2 weekend on the UNCW Softball Tournament, the place the Rockets defeated UNCG and Army on Saturday to shut out the weekend. At the plate, Samantha Bolding is hitting .364 with 24 hits, six doubles, three house runs, 11 RBI and 15 runs scored, whereas Eli Enriquez is batting .343 with 24 hits, 13 runs scored, 4 doubles, two house runs and eight RBI. In the circle, Katie McDonald is 2-4 in 11 video games and has a 4.20 ERA. In 45 innings, she has allowed 35 runs, 27 earned, on 68 hits, whereas strolling 11 and hanging out 34. 

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