THURSDAY'S SCORES
UT Martin 9, @Evansville 1 (5)
UT MARTIN 9, EVANSVILLE 1
EVANSVILLE, Ind. - The University of Tennessee at Martin softball team made quick work of Missouri Valley Conference foe Evansville on Thursday afternoon, posting a 9-1 win in five innings to push its season-long winning streak out to eight games.
The Skyhawks (18-10) tallied nine hits on the afternoon behind a game-high three hits by sophomore Paige Clark. The left fielder posted a big day along with her three hits by tallying three RBIs and a stolen base. UT Martin would also get base hits from Chayse Skinner, Aalia Bivens, Haylee Short, Georgia Land and Kallie Pickens.
Freshman Erin Gallagher (4-1) continues to impress in the pitching circle, allowing just one earned run in five innings of work.
UT Martin began its scoring onslaught in the second inning when Bivens doubled to left center before coming home to score on a RBI single up the middle by Land. The score became tied in the bottom half of the second off a double by Evansville’s Allison Dagget. With the game knotted once again, the Skyhawks placed runners on second and third with no outs before a two-run single by Short up the middle plated a pair of runs to make it a 3-1 margin.
The Skyhawks continued to put distance between themselves and the home squad in the top of the fourth inning. A leadoff walk proved costly as a two-run double to right center by Clark scored a pair. With the margin at four runs, a pair of back-to-back errors scored two more runs for the Skyhawks.
Needing just two more runs to enact the mercy rule, UT Martin achieved the feat in the top of the fifth. A leadoff error came around to hurt the Purple Aces again as Short reached base, stole second and later scored on a RBI single by Pickens. The Skyhawks officially put the game out of reach on a RBI single by Clark to bring the score to 9-1.
UT Martin will return to action this weekend with a pair of doubleheaders in Music City with a matchup at Belmont on Saturday, March 23 before heading across town to Tennessee State on Sunday, March 24.