WEDNESDAY'S GAMES
@Purdue 9,
Eastern Illinois 5
@North Alabama 10,
Tennessee State 4
@Kennesaw State 5,
Tennessee Tech 2
@Lindenwood 1, Saint Louis 0
@Western Kentucky 9,
Morehead State 0 (5)
PURDUE 9, EASTERN ILLINOIS 5
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - Eastern Illinois took a 3-0 lead in the first two innings but the Panthers were unable to hold that lead, falling 9-5 on Wednesday at Big Ten member Purdue.
EIU fell to 19-9 on the season while Purdue improved to 12-14 on the year.
The Panthers jumped on the board in the first on a home run by Jadin Justman to left field.
EIU tacked on two more in the third as McKenzie Oslanzi drove in the first of the two runs with an RBI double that had ricocheted off Purdue starter Emma Bailey. Marama Makea laid down a sacrifice bunt to score the next run against relief pitcher Kendall Klochack.
Klochack would shut down EIU's offense with four innings of one-hit relief. She improved to 4-2 on the season.
McKenzie Oslanzi suffered the loss for EIU falling to 11-2. After being held scoreless in the first, the Boilermakers scored in the next five innings.
Hailey Hayes had a two-run homer in the second and Purdue tied the game against Oslanzi in the third with an unearned run. Purdue took the lead with a two-run triple by Moriah Polar, one of two run producing triples in the inning.
Hayes had an RBI double in the fifth and Purdue's final runs came in the sixth unearned against EIU pitching.
EIU had one final rally in the seventh loading the bases with no outs. EIU scored one run on a double play followed by an RBI single to left by Karson Davey. Davey had two hits to lead EIU.
Kendall Grover joined Justman and Oslanzi with extra base hits for EIU with a double in the seventh.
NORTH ALABAMA 10, TENNESSEE STATE 4
FLORENCE, Ala. - Senior Anayah Baker-Rowell racked up three hits, but the Tennessee State softball team fell to the North Alabama Lions 10-4 Wednesday.
Junior Reina Castillo (4-3) got the ball to start for Tennessee State (14-12) and took the loss.
In addition to her three hits, Baker-Rowell had a double and an RBI to lead the Tigers. Senior Nahtali Simpson furnished a standout effort as well, going 1-for-2 with a walk and an RBI.
Trailing 2-0, the Tigers first put runs on the board in the fourth inning. Tennessee State got an RBI single from Simpson, scoring Baker-Rowell from third base.
The Tigers deficit expanded to 4-1 before their offense got back on the scoreboard, cutting into that deficit in the fifth inning. Tennessee State picked up two runs in the frame, the big hit being an RBI double from Baker-Rowell, which brought the score to 4-3 in favor of the Lions.
North Alabama expanded their lead to 10-3 before the Tennessee State offense got back to work, reducing that lead to 10-4 in the seventh. The ballgame ended with that seventh-inning rally falling short.
KENNESAW STATE 5, TENNESSEE TECH 2
KENNESAW, Ga. - It was a close game on Wednesday, but Kennesaw State used a four-run fifth inning to overcome the Tennessee Tech squad and take a 5-2 victory.
Carmen Betts led the Golden Eagles at the plate as she went 2-for-4 with one of Tech's two RBI. Abby Shoulders had the other RBI as her ball hit to second was misfielded, allowing Alina Schlageter to score on the throw to plate the first run of the game in the top of the third inning.
Ava Guzowski tied the game in the home half of the inning, driving in Stella Henry with a single.
Tech (12-10) retook the lead in the top of the fifth as Betts drove in Mac Fitzgerald with a base knock.
KSU (10-18) broke the game open as Guzowski brought Ty Hardeman in to roost with a sacrifice fly, then Kiera Cooper came through with a two-run double to plate Kassidy Amerson-Fox and Henry. Reese Evans' single allowed Cooper to score.
Peyton Wagner had a solid start, allowing one unearned run on two hits in three innings of work, walking two and striking out one. Lennon Spicer took the loss as she allowed four runs on four hits with two walks. Emily York threw the final frame, scattering two hits with one strikeout.
Owl starter Lindsey Kyte gave up one run on two hits with a walk and a strikeout, with reliever Leah Jannakos claiming the win. She yielded one run on three hits. Kenley Hilleary closed the game out with two hitless innings, allowing just two walks.
LINDENWOOD 1, SAINT LOUIS 0
ST. CHARLES, Mo. - Lindenwood softball (13-14, 2-4 OVC) picked up a non-conference home win over their cross-town opponent Saint Louis (14-10, 2-1 A-10) by a final score of 1-0 on Wednesday. The Lions held Saint Louis to just three base runners all game.
Amanda Weyh (W, 8-6) picked up the win on the mound after throwing five innings allowing just two hits in the win. This marked her eighth win of the season, tying her for second place in the Ohio Valley Conference. Weyh tossed four strikeouts in the process.
After the fifth inning, Avery Wapp (S, 1) came on four the lions shutting down the Billikens in the last two innings giving up no hits and not allowing a single base runner. It marked Wapp's first save of the season and was the fifth shutout for Lindenwood this season.
At the plate, the Lions finished the ball game with seven hits and held Saint Louis to just two with a batting average of .087. Mya Bethany and Ashley Gerber both had two hits for the Lions including a Bethany double down the left field line.
It was an offensive struggle for most of the game for the Lions with runners on as they left a total of 11 on throughout the game. After three singles in the first inning to load the bases, Irelynn West grounded out to keep the game scoreless.
Lindenwood would leave another two runners on base in the third inning after the Billikens' starting pitcher Taylor Hochman got West to pop out to third base. Saint Louis also struggled against Weyh who had allowed just two hits in the first five innings.
Bethany's double came in key during the fifth inning after poking it down the left field line to get into scoring position. After a wild pitch moved Bethany over to third, Izzy Wilcox was able to get the sacrifice bunt down to score Bethany and give LU to 1-0 lead.
Wapp came in relief for the Lions in the sixth picking up her first save of the season after sitting down the next six batters she faced.
WESTERN KENTUCKY 9, MOREHEAD STATE 0 (5)
BOWLING GREEN, Ky. - Freshman Rylan Smith and sophomore Maddy Wood combined to toss a shutout on Wednesday as the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers blanked the Morehead State Eagles 9-0.
Sophomore Jessie Begley (4-2) got the ball to start for Morehead State (7-12) and took the loss. Freshman Addie Stem was a bright spot for the Eagles, coming out of the bullpen and throwing one shutout inning, allowing one hit.
Begley pitched 2.2 innings, allowed seven hits, seven runs (six earned), with three walks and a strikeout. Freshman Cassiti Baroni threw for a third of an inning, surrendering two walks and two unearned runs. Stem finished the game by pitching one inning and yielding just one hit.
In the batter's box, the Eagles were led by freshman Kendra Lewis, who went 1-for-2 on the day.
MSU reached base on a walk by Samantha Cervantes in the second and a single by Kendra Lewis to left-center field in the fourth.
The Eagles also turned their seventh double play of the season, when Sela Pickford caught a line drive at third base and tossed it over to Nazari Jackson at first.