SUNDAY'S SCORES
Eastern Illinois 7, @Murray State 1
Eastern Illinois 3, @Murray State 0
SIUE 7, @UT Martin 2
@UT Martin 9, SIUE 2
Tennessee Tech 6, @Belmont 3
@Belmont 10, Tennessee Tech 2
Jacksonville State 7, @Tennessee State 0
Jacksonville State 6, @Tennessee State 0
Austin Peay 6, @Southeast Missouri 2
AUSTIN PEAY 6, SOUTHEAST MISSOURI 2
CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. - Austin Peay (16-16, 5-4) capitalized on a two-out error to score four unearned runs in the top of the sixth inning to pull out a 6-2 come-from-behind victory over Southeast Missouri (7-18, 2-5) Sunday afternoon.
The Lady Govs claimed the series win.
Down, 2-1, after five, APSU had runners on first and second with two outs when third baseman Haylee Krack charged a slow roller off the bat of Laurel Burroughs. Krack bobbled the ball, Burroughs was safe at first and pinch-runner Taylor Mills scored the tying run. Kristin Whitmire followed with a RBI-single and Amanda De Vries delivered a two-RBI double after the miscue, giving the Lady Govs a three-run advantage.
APSU added one more run on a sacrifice fly by Lauren de Castro to extend its lead to 6-2 in the seventh.
Southeast managed to load the bases with one out during its final at-bat of the game. Leah Duffe quickly moved into scoring position on an error by center fielder Rikki Arkansas. After Chelsea Smith popped out to third, Krack was hit by a pitch and Lindsey Patterson walked after an 11-pitch at-bat to put Redhawks at every base. De Castro, however, pitched out of the jam when she got Savannah Carpenter to hit into a fielder's choice and struck out Rachael Duncan.
The Redhawks took an early lead with two runs in the bottom of the first. Krack walked and scored on Patterson's ensuing double out of the cleanup spot with two outs. Carpenter kept things going with a walk before Duncan knocked in Patterson on a single to center, giving Southeast a 2-0 edge.
De Castro (11-6) picked up the win, striking out nine and walking four in seven innings. She gave up five hits and two runs, as well. De Castro recorded a combined 20 strikeouts during her two starts in the series.
Hannah Durham (2-5) took the loss. Durham started strong, tossing four-straight scoreless innings. She was charged with five runs (one earned), scattered seven hits and walked one in 5.2 innings. Additionally, Durham faced 26 hitters and did not have a strikeout.
Southeast, which left 10 runners on base, had five hits on the day. Patterson, Carpenter, Duncan, Jamie Woodworth and Meaghan Touchette posted one each. Woodworth has reached base in nine-straight games.
Kayla Davidson, Whitmire and De Vries all had two hits to lead the APSU. Whitmire (2-for-3, 1 run, 1 RBI) and De Vries (2-for-3, 1 run, 2 RBI) combined for four hits, two runs scored and three RBI at the bottom of the Lady Govs lineup.
TENNESSEE TECH 6, BELMONT 3; BELMONT 10, TENNESSEE TECH 2
NASHVILLE, Tenn.- Belmont Softball earned a split on the afternoon vs. Tennessee Tech after defeating the Golden Eagles, 10-2 (5 inn.), in the second game of the day after dropping a 6-3 contest in the first game.
Game 1: Tennessee Tech 6, Belmont 3
Tennessee Tech continued its trend of fast starts in the first game of the afternoon as the Golden Eagles came out of the gates swinging.
Tech scored six runs in the top of the first inning off four hits. A two-RBI triple by Chelsea Burgess highlighted TTU's display of offensive fireworks.
Belmont recovered to cut TTU's lead in half in the bottom of the second inning as an RBI-triple from Mia Vierra (Palmdale, Calif.) followed by a two-RBI double from Amy Zeronian (Pasadena, Calif.) scored three Bruin runs.
That was as close as Belmont came, however, as BU's best chance at tying up the contest came in the fifth inning when a flyout from freshman catcher Chelsea Deloney (Gardendale, Ala.) left two Bruins on base as Tech's first inning explosion was all it needed in order to hold on for the 6-3 victory and capture it's first win of the weekend series.
A pair of Texans led Belmont offensively as senior Kirbie Ferrell (Pasadena, Tex.) finished 2-for-4 while sophomore Jordan Daly (Humble, Tex.) was a perfect 2-for-2 for the Bruins.
Game 2: Belmont 10, Tennessee Tech 2
The second game of the doubleheader started in the same manner as the previous two contests as Tennessee Tech came out of the gates hot at the mound.
TTU scored two runs in the top of the first inning off three hits as the Golden Eagles once again took the early advantage over the Bruins.
Belmont quickly responded in the home half of the first inning as a double from Kat Hollingsworth (Carrollton, Tex.) followed by a triple from Jordan Daly knocked in a pair of runs to tie up the contest.
Belmont broke the game open in the third inning as the Bruins drove in six runs off five hits. RBI singles from Zeronian and Ferrell highlighted BU's offensive barrage.
The Bruins added a pair of insurance runs in the fourth inning when sophomore Taylor Moon (Vestavia, Ala.) hit a two-RBI double to centerfield.
Tennessee Tech (10-26, 2-8 OVC) didn't have any offensive answers left as the Bruins went on for the easy 10-2 victory in five innings, capturing a split on the day and winning the weekend series over the Golden Eagles.
Of Tennessee Tech's 11 runs over the three-game series, 10 of those came in the first inning.
Moon (5-5) earned the victory on the mound as the right-hander threw four innings, allowing two runs off five hits.
Kirbie Ferrell recorded another great effort as the second baseman went a perfect 3-for-3 with an RBI. On the day, Ferrell notched five hits on seven at-bats to lead the Bruins at the mound.
SIUE 7, UT MARTIN 2; UT MARTIN 9, SIUE 2
MARTIN, Tenn. - The University of Tennessee at Martin softball team struggled in the series opener against Ohio Valley Conference foe SIU Edwardsville on Sunday afternoon, dropping Game One 7-2, before fighting back for a decisive 9-2 victory to split the doubleheader.
The Skyhawks (15-16-1, 5-3 OVC) scored 11 runs on the day, including nine in second game of the day. Lauren Smith tallied the lone home run of the day, including four walks. Kelsey Dixon tallied three hits on the day, driving in a pair of runs. Samantha McClure tallied three-RBIs on the afternoon while Carly Gonzales and Stephanie Nidiffer also tallied multi-RBI games with two apiece.
Casey Vincent (3-4) earned a victory in the circle, allowing two earned runs in seven innings of work. Vincent struck out four while allowing one walk and holding the Cougars to a .154 batting average. Elizabeth Wiegand (9-4) picked up the loss after allowing four earned runs in seven innings of work. Wiegand struck out seven while walking one but allowed the Cougars to post a .281 average.
SIUE struck first in the top of the second inning off three Skyhawk errors. The leadoff batter reached on an infield error before eventually coming around to score on the second error of the inning. Brittany Toney would tally an RBI single down the right field line to give the Cougars an early 2-0 lead. The Cougars would add another run on an error before Jordan LaFave singled to right field scoring a pair and extending the SIUE lead out to 5-0.
The Cougars would strike again in the top of the third inning to extend their lead. Haley Chambers would lead off the third inning with a walk before coming around to score on an RBI double into center field off the bat of Whitney Lanphier.
The Skyhawks would finally bust into the hit column in the bottom of the third. Smith would lead off the inning with a seven-pitch walk before being pulled for pinch runner Bella Zizzi. Zizzi wasted little time making her presence known, swiping second base. Zizzi would come around to score two batters later as Dixon would single to left center, cutting into the Cougars margin.
SIUE would look to get its advantage back to six in the top of the fourth inning. Chelsea Yankolovich and Allison Smiley would both tally outfield singles, putting runners on first and third with two outs. Chambers would use a well-placed bunt single back to the pitcher to score Yankolovich, giving the Cougars the 7-1 advantage after four innings.
UT Martin would tally their second and final hit of the day in the bottom of the fifth inning off the bat of Smith. Following a leadoff strikeout, Smith would smoke a solo home run, her fifth of the season, off the left field scoreboard. The run would bring the Skyhawks to a 7-2 deficit, the game’s final score.
Much like in Game One, the Cougars struck first. SIUE tallied two hits in the opening half inning, tallying one run on a groundout from Chambers to the pitcher to take the early 1-0 lead.
The script quickly flipped in the bottom half of the first as the Skyhawks exploded for six runs on five hits. Dixon led off the inning with a single up the middle before advancing to second a wild pitch. Kenzi Tate and Deven Wilson tallied consecutive walks to load the bases with just one out. Nidiffer would score both Dixon and Tate on a two-RBI single into right field to take the early 2-1 lead, the Skyhawks first of the series. Nidiffer would have Zizzi appear to pinch run in her place, as Zizzi picked up her second stolen base of the day to move into scoring position. Zizzi’s time at second would be short as Gonzales doubled through the left side to score both Zizzi and Wilson.
McClure would keep her promising day going with a single through the left side to score Gonzales before the inning would end following an RBI groundout by Dixon. Skyhawks had a total of 11 plate appearances in the bottom of the first inning to go along with a 6-1 lead.
The Skyhawks would strike again in the bottom of the third inning. Gonzales would lead off the inning with a single through the left side, before coming around to score on an RBI groundout by McClure. After reaching base following a walk, Smith would eventually come around to score on a wild pitch to stretch the Skyhawks lead out to a game-high 8-1 advantage.
SIUE would tally its second run of the game in the top of the sixth inning. Smiley doubled to left field with one out, before advancing to third on an error on the following play. Smiley would come around to score on a groundout by Chambers, trimming the Skyhawk margin to an 8-2 deficit.
UT Martin would strike once more in the bottom of the sixth inning. A combination of a single, a hit by pitch and an error left McClure at the plate with the bases loaded and two outs. McClure would battle through a seven pitch at bat before being struck by a pitch, scoring the Skyhawks final run.
JACKSONVILLE STATE 7, TENNESSEE STATE 0; JACKSONVILLE STATE 6, TENNESSEE STATE 0
NASHVILLE, Tenn. - - Logan Green and Tiffany Harbin gave the Jacksonville State softball team a couple of gems in the circle on Sunday, when the Gamecocks swept a doubleheader at Tennessee State to cap a sweep of the Tigers in the Ohio Valley Conference series in Nashville.
Green got the day started for the Gamecocks (23-8, 8-2 OVC) with a two-hit shutout in a 7-0 win over the Tigers (14-23, 2-7 OVC) before Harbin answered with a one hitter in a 6-0 win in the finale. JSU won the series opener 10-0 on Saturday.
TSU got one runner past first base against Green in the first game and only had two baserunners against Harbin in the nightcap. Harbin was dominant for the second-straight day, tying her career high with 15 strikeouts on Sunday, just one shy of the school record, one day after retiring 13 Tiger batters on strikes in the opening win of the series. Over her two starts, the Hazel Green, Ala., native allowed three hits in 14 scoreless innings, while striking out 28 batters.
The JSU pitching duo got plenty of run support in a series that saw the Gamecocks outscore TSU 23-0. The Gamecocks hit .319 as a team in the series, while TSU managed just a .090 average (6-for-67) over the three games.
In the first game of the day, Green gave up a leadoff single to Linsdey Burgess in the first and didn't allow another hit until an infield single with two outs in the seventh. The Hebron, Md., native struck out a career-high six in her first career complete-game shutout and her fourth complete game in seven starts.
She got all the runs she would need in the third, when an error started things off and set up a three-run inning for the Gamecocks. Sophomore Cadi Oliver drove in a pair with a one-out single up the middle before Savannah Sloan's two-out single to right made capped the inning. JSU scored three more in the fifth and one in the seventh to finish the scoring for the game.
Senior Hayden Crawford had RBI singles in each the fifth and seventh frames, while a two-run pinch-hit double from junior Melanie Steer plated a pair in the fifth. Crawford, a native of Sparkman, Ala., was 2-for-4 with two RBI in the game, one of four JSU players with multiple hits in the opener. Junior Sara Borders, Oliver and Sloan each recorded a pair of base hits.
Green (5-2) defeated Shea Morris (8-8) in the circle, allowing the two hits in seven scoreless innings. Morris allowed seven runs, five earned, on 12 hits, but struck out nine Gamecock batters. Both pitchers issued one walk.
In the series finale, Harbin (9-4) and TSU's Olivia Gamache went back-and-forth for three scoreless innings before three Tiger errors led to four unearned runs in the top of the fourth. Miscues by the Tigers' left fielder, shortstop and third baseman scored three of the runs, while freshman Jamie McGuire's RBI single plated the other.
Sophomore Casey Craig delivered an RBI single in the sixth, just before a bases-loaded pitch hit Crawford to drive in JSU's sixth and final run of the game. McGuire was the lone Gamecock with multiple hits off of Gamache, going 2-for-3 with an RBI.
Harbin fanned 15 in the win, her 11th complete game and fifth shutout of the season, and allowed only two runners to reach base. Courtney Gearlds got TSU's lone hit on an infield single in the sixth that broke up Harbin's attempt at a perfect game, and Burgess was hit by a pitch later in the inning.
Gamache (4-8) struck out eight and walked two in seven innings that saw her allow six runs, only two earned, on seven hits.
EASTERN ILLINOIS 7, MURRAY STATE 1; EASTERN ILLINOIS 3, MURRAY STATE 0
MURRAY, Ky. - After having Saturday's action washed out, Eastern Illinois softball turned in a complete team effort to sweep Ohio Valley Conference rival Murray State on Sunday (March 30), 7-1 and 3-0.
With the pair of wins, EIU improves to 23-9 overall and 4-2 in early-season league action as the fellow OVC West Division rival Racers drop to 15-16 and 4-4.
The third game of the league series is set for tomorrow (March 31) afternoon at noon at Racer Field, as heavy rain in the Murray, Ky., area pushed back the entire three-game conference slate a day.
Senior pitcher Hanna Mennenga picked up two complete game victories to up her season record to 14-2. She struck out 10 batters over the two games.
Bailey O'Dell led the Panthers, going 4-for-6 for the day, including hitting her first home run of the season.
Murray State's Shelby Miller paced the team in game with with a pair of hits while Mo Ramsey recorded a team-best two hits in the second game.