WEDNESDAY SCORES
Eastern Illinois 5, ULM 4
Eastern Illinois 11, @Southern 2
@East Tennessee State 3,
Tennessee Tech 2
Tennessee Tech 6, @East Tennessee State 3
UT Martin 10, @Chattanooga 7
EASTERN ILLINOIS 5, ULM 4; EASTERN ILLINOIS 11, SOUTHERN 2
BATON ROUGE, La. - Eastern Illinois softball improved to 6-1 on the season after picking up a pair of wins on Wednesday. EIU beat Southern University 10-2 in the first game of the day before edging Louisiana Monroe, 5-4, in the second contest.
In the opener EIU broke open a 1-0 game with six runs in the third as Mia Davis and Megan Burton both had home runs in the inning. Davis shot was a solo blast with one out in the inning. Burton had a three-run home run as she finished the day 1-for-4 with four RBI.
Hannah Cravens would continue her hot start to the season in the fifth with a solo home run. It was Cravens fifth home run of the season as she went 3-for-4 in the game. Abi Stahlhut added an RBI in the seventh going 3-for-4.
Morgan Lewis was 3-for-3 with two stolen bases while Aniya Holt was 3-for-4 including a solo home run to start the Panthers scoring in the third.
Olivia Price tossed a complete game to move to 1-0 on the year. Southern (0-8) would score two runs in the game with one in the fifth and one in the sixth. Kaytlin Donaldson suffered the loss for Southern while Lauren Parks had two hits.
In the second game of the day, EIU held off a late ULM rally to pick up the one run victory.
The Warhawks jumped on the board in the first with doubles by Kennedy Page and Madison Blount. EIU starter Jade Montgomery would work out of first and allowed just two more earned runs the remainder of the game moving to 3-1 on the season.
Katie Nicholson pinch hit in the top of the third to start a Panthers rally. Lewis reached on an error with both Nicholson and Lewis advancing to second and third on the next at-bat by Burton. That set the table for three consecutive run producing hits by Cravens, Haley Mitchell and Davis. Cravens and Davis both had run scoring doubles in their turn at the plate.
After ULM cut the lead to one with a solo home run by Korie Kreps in the bottom of the third, EIU tacked on a pair of insurance runs in the fifth. Three of EIU’s first four batters in the inning collected hits with the big blow, a two-run single by Davis. Davis was 2-for-3 in the game with three RBI.
In the sixth the Warhawks opened with three hits and a sac bunt to cut the lead to one. Andie Edwards had an RBI single with the other ULM run scoring on an error. Montgomery would close the door on the rally with her fourth strikeout of day with runners at first and second.
Four ULM players finished with two hits each with Kreps going 2-for-3 with the home run. Amber Coons (0-1) was tagged with the loss as ULM fell to 2-2 on the year.
Lewis and Mitchell joined Davis with two hits each in the night cap.
EAST TENNESSEE STATE 3, TENNESSEE TECH 2; TENNESSEE TECH 6, EAST TENNESSEE 3
JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. - It’s just the beginning of a potentially busy week for the Tennessee Tech softball team as the Golden Eagles went into Johnson City and scratched out a split with the home Bucs, falling in game one 3-2, then bringing out the guns for game two in a 6-3 victory.
But the week is far from over yet as the Tech softball team completed the addition of a Thursday doubleheader at Chattanooga after this weekend’s Frost Classic was wiped out with the projected forecast. The Golden Eagles are also exploring the addition of games this weekend, details of which will be announced when available.
Sophomore Nicolle Nysted had a day, going a combined 3-for-6 with three RBI at the plate, including the first two home runs this season for the Golden Eagles, the third in her career. Senior Sydney Love-Baker went 3-for-3 with an RBI in the opener, while following it up with two RBI and a 1-for-4 performance in the nightcap to end the day 4-for-7. Senior Jessie Lowery went 3-for-4 with an RBI in game two.
In the circle, junior Alyssa Arden saw her ERA fall to 0.66 after the start in game one and coming on in relief for the save in game two. Despite taking the loss, she had a good effort in the opener, allowing three unearned runs on three hits, walking and striking out four across 4 1/3 innings.
The ETSU runs scored in the third, staring with a leadoff hit batter, then an error putting runners on second and third. Following a foul-out to Nysted behind the plate and a strikeout for the second out. Nikki Grupp then hit a three-run home run, all unearned.
Fitzgerald made her first appearance in the circle for the Golden Eagles this season in relief, holding ETSU hitless over 1 2/3 innings.
Tech took a 1-0 lead as Love-Baker hit an RBI double to right center, bringing home freshman Mackenzie Fitzgerald. Trailing in the sixth, Nysted collected the first of her RBI with a two-out single to left, driving in senior Beth McCulley, who reached on a double.
Arden came on in relief in game two and shut the door in the final 1 2/3 innings, yielding two hits but nothing else. Haeli Bryson collected her second win of the season as she held off ETSU over 5 1/3 frames, allowing three runs on six hits with a walk and four strikeouts.
Tech was on the board quickly in the first as Love-Baker drove in Fitzgerald with a single to center. It became a 2-0 lead in the second as Nysted led off with a solo home run to right. The Golden Eagles put two more runs on in the third as Nysted homered again, this time a two-run shot to left center, bringing Bryson along to score. Tech scored twice more in the fourth with Lowery collecting an RBI double, driving in Chandler Caldwell, then Lowery scoring on a throwing error on the ETSU catcher off a ball hit by Love-Baker.
Leading 6-0, ETSU collected a single run on a two-out single to left center in the fifth, then a two-run home for Lili Bowen ended Bryson’s day in the sixth. Arden came on and coaxed a fly out and a pop up to end the sixth. In the seventh, ETSU led off with a single, but a pop-up, a fielder’s choice to erase the lead runner and a foul out ended the contest in the bottom of the seventh.
UT MARTIN 10, CHATTANOOGA 7
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. - The University of Tennessee at Martin softball team continued its offensive onslaught on Wednesday night, scoring a season-high 10 runs en route to a 10-7 win over in-state foe Chattanooga on the road.
The Skyhawks (5-0) scored a season-high 10 runs on the night while marking the most runs scored since Feb. 23, 2020. With the win, UT Martin remained undefeated and continued its best start to a campaign since the 2017 season.
UT Martin tallied 11 hits on the night, led by the play of sophomore Chelsey Gore who went 3-for-4 with a double and two RBIs. Gore was one of four players to tally multiple base hits in the contest as Kaitlyn Kelley, Paige Clark and Macey Neal each scratched out a pair of base knocks. The Skyhawk trio of Gore, Neal and Shyanne Sheffield made the most of the base runners in front of them, notching two RBIs each.
Erin Gallagher earned the start in the circle for the Skyhawks and pitched three innings, striking out three while allowing two earned runs. Seeley Layne (2-0, 1.17 ERA) earned her seventh career victory after pitching two scoreless innings of middle relief. Alexis Groet pitched one-plus inning and allowed one earned run while Hannah Ridolfi got the final three outs.
For the third time this season, UT Martin would get on the scoreboard first, tallying a run in the opening inning. Reigning OVC Player of the Week Kaci Fuller led off the game with a single to centerfield before tallying her fifth stolen base of the season. Gore would mirror Fuller’s at-bat with a single of her own before swiping her own stolen base to put two runners in scoring position. With the go-ahead run just 60 feet down the line, Kallie Pickens drove in the first run of the contest with a RBI groundout.
Chattanooga (2-4) would strike back in the bottom half of the inning as a walk set up Cameren Swafford for a two-run home run to left field to put the Mocs on top 2-1.
The score would remain a one-run margin until the top of the fourth when the Skyhawks exploded for five runs on four hits and two errors. A leadoff single by Kelley started the frame before eventually coming home to score on an infield error. Then the Skyhawks would load the bases with one out to set up Neal for a prime RBI opportunity which she cashed in with a single up the middle to retake the lead. Following a pitching change, UT Martin would plate another run off an error before finding RBIs from Fuller and Gore on back-to-back at bats to take a 6-2 advantage.
UT Martin added three more critical insurance runs in the top of the fifth inning. Following a leadoff walk to Aalia Bivens and a double to right center by Clark to put runners on second and third, Sheffield laid down a sacrifice bunt to push the run across the plate. The Skyhawks then closed out the frame with RBI singles by Neal and Gore to push the team’s margin out to 9-2.
The Skyhawks added their final run of the contest in the top of the sixth inning. Kelley led off the frame with a double to right field before being lifted for pinch runner Emily Gilstrap. After a groundout was followed by a fielder’s choice and a stolen base, Sheffield recorded her second RBI of the night to give the Skyhawks their 10th run.
Chattanooga would not go down without a fight after facing an eight-run deficit. Following a flurry of roster moves, three consecutive Mocs would reach base to load the bases with one out. Gracey Kruse would loft a sacrifice fly into centerfield for one RBI while an error led to a second run crossing the plate. Then in the seventh inning the Mocs added three more runs on a pair of errors and a groundout to make it a 10-7 margin before the Skyhawks escaped the jam with the final out.
UT Martin will now make the short drive over to Knoxville to participate in the Tennessee Invitational beginning on Thursday, Feb. 25. The Skyhawks are set to take on Illinois State at 1:30 p.m. CST followed by a matchup against host #23 Tennessee at 4 p.m. CST on SEC Network+.