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The 2022 Ohio Valley Conference Softball Championship continues on Friday with three games.
The Championship is being held for the 28th time in 2022 and for the sixth year at Choccolocco Park in Oxford, Alabama. Tickets for the event are $10 per person per day (ages 12 and up) or $25 for an all-session pass for the entire event. Children 6-12 are $5 per day as are college students with a valid ID. Parking is $5 per day.
The entire event will be streamed on ESPN+.
Game 9: #4 Southeast Missouri 10, #3 UT Martin 8
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Game 10: #1 Murray State 1, #2 Belmont 0
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Game 11: #1 Belmont 3, #4 Southeast Missouri 2
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#4 SOUTHEAST MISSOURI 10, #3 UT MARTIN 8
OXFORD, Ala. - v #4 Southeast Missouri (30-23) never trailed en route to bouncing #3 UT Martin (34-19) from the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament with a 10-8 victory Friday morning at Choccolocco Park.
Although SEMO didn't give up its lead, the game came down to the wire and a huge two-run home run by Kaylee Anderson stood tall in the end.
The Redhawks picked up their 30th win of the season and stayed alive as one of just three teams left duking it out for this year's OVC Championship. The 30-win season is SEMO's 19th in program history and fourth in a row when the team has played a complete season (SEMO did not complete the 2020 season due to COVID-19).
SEMO notched five hits to key a four-run second inning.
Kynzie Wrigley sent a jolt into the Redhawks when she legged out an infield single. Kaylee Anderson followed with a single to right center and Chelsy Pena laid down a great bunt to load the bases. Rookie Tori Bradley, behind 1-2 in the count, ripped a two-RBI single up the middle. Fellow freshman Sydney Dennis later smacked a one-out double to right center and both Bradley and Pena scored to put SEMO ahead, 4-0.
UTM answered to make it a one-run game with three runs of its own during the home half of the second. Erin Gilstrap and Katie Dreiling each had run-scoring hits and Shyanne Sheffield touched home on a fielder's choice to cut the Redhawks lead to 4-3.
Two innings later, the Skyhawks tied the game on a one-out single by Paige Clark.
SEMO then capitalized executed some small ball to regain a three-run lead in the top of the fifth. With Dennis already on base by way of an error, Abigail Rickermann reached on a bunt single. Paige Halliwill bunted and a throwing error on the play led to a pair of unearned runs. Wrigley brought home Halliwill on a sacrifice fly to give SEMO a 7-4 advantage.
After Pena scored on a passed ball in the sixth, UTM sparked a one-out rally with three-straight hits and scored three times to get within one. The Skyhawks had the bases loaded with one out when Rachel Rook settled in to get out of the jam to keep it an 8-7 ballgame.
Halliwill led off the seventh with a walk and that would come back to hurt the Skyhawks after Anderson drilled her home run to left center extending the Redhawks margin to 10-7. It was team-best 11th home run for the First-Team All-OVC outfielder.
UTM didn't go away quietly during its final at-bat. The Skyhawks had runners on first and third with one out and Katie Dreiling – who played her freshman year at SEMO -- at the plate. Dreiling grounded out and Erin Gilstrap scored. Rook struck out Kaitlyn Kelley to end the game.
Marisa Davis (5-7) picked up the win after giving the Redhawks two innings of relief. Davis gave up three runs on three hits, struck out three and walked none.
Rook logged the final 1.2 innings where she struck out two and allowed one run on five hits. She secured her third save and second in as many games.
SEMO finished with eight hits with Anderson and Pena accounting for two apiece. Anderson and Pena both scored two runs, as well. Rickermann, who returned to the starting lineup after sustaining a cut on a collision with Tennessee Tech's third baseman Thursday night, had a hit and one run scored.
Wrigley added a hit and two runs, while Bradley and Dennis also contributed a hit.
SEMO will face the loser of #1 Murray State and #2 Belmont in an elimination game later today. Initial start time is set for 4 p.m., CT.
#1 MURRAY STATE 1, #2 BELMONT 0
OXFORD, Ala. - Murray State advanced to the finals of the 2022 OVC Softball Championships with a 1-0 win over Belmont Friday at Choccolocco Park in Oxford, Alabama.
Sierra Gilmore scored the lone run of the game when she crushed a ball down the left field line in the bottom of the fourth. The home run was the sixth of the season for Gilmore and the 28th of her career.
Hannah James and Jenna Veber combined for Murray State's 19th shutout of the season, further extending the program record. James allowed just two hits with four strikeouts over 5.0 innings for the win, while Veber notched a save by giving up no hits while also striking out four over the final two innings.
With the win Friday, James became just the third Racer in program history to notch 20 victories in the same season. She joins Mason Robinson and CheyAnne Gaskey as the only MSU pitchers to accomplish the feat.
The win was the 39th of the season for the Racers, marking the most win in a single season in a program history. The previous record of 38 wins was set in the 2015 season.
Lily Fischer was hit by a pitch for the 22nd time this season in the game, setting a new school record in the process. The previous record of 21 was set by Ellyn Troup during the 2012 season.
#1 BELMONT 3, #4 SOUTHEAST MISSOURI 2
OXFORD, Ala. - No. 2 Belmont defeated No. 4 Southeast Missouri, 3-2, on Friday at the OVC Softball Championships.
Belmont moves on to face #1 Murray State for the OVC Championship Saturday. The Bruins will need to beat the Racers twice for this year's crown.
SEMO scored in the first inning for the third time in the tournament when it came to the plate in its opening at-bat.
Abigail Rickermann led off the game with a walk. Rickermann stole second and advanced to third on an error before scoring when Paige Halliwill reached on an error. Chelsy Pena knocked in Aubrie Shore on a two-out single to center as SEMO took a quick 2-0 lead.
The Bruins scored a pair of two-out runs to tie things up in the bottom of the second. Audrey Lyle drove in Elison Olinger. Rickermann fielded a groundball by Killian Roberts deep at short and threw to catcher Kat Sackett who tagged Emma Barnes before she reached home plate. Barnes, however, was ruled safe anyway due to obstruction bringing the game to a 2-2 deadlock.
The Bruins drew four walks in the fifth inning, where they scored the run that was the difference in the end. BEL had the bases loaded with no outs and Abi Ledbetter walked to score Baie Ensio.
The bases were still full of Bruins with no one out when Pena made an outstanding catch on a hard-hit line drive by Emily Cockrill in left field. SEMO won an appeal at third base where Cheyenne Cavanaugh was called out after leaving the bag early resulting in a double play for the Redhawks. Rachel Rook then escaped the jam to keep it a one-run ballgame.
SEMO had one last chance in the top of the seventh with runners on first and second and no outs following back-to-back hits by freshmen Tatum Gerwitz and Sydney Dennis. Emma Summers later earned the save with three-straight outs.
The Redhawks had just four hits. Pena led the way with two hits in her final game at SEMO.