Ohio Valley Conference

CHARLESTON, Ill. - Eastern Illinois softball ran its current win streak out to 12 games as the Panthers moved over .500 for the season with a Wednesday doubleheader sweep of Bradley at Williams Field.

EIU won the opener 5-3 before an 8-5 win in the night cap.  The Panthers improved to 17-16 on the season.  Bradley fell to 7-24 on the year.
 
Karlie McKenzie tossed her first complete game of the season picking up her third win as the Panthers won the opener 5-3.
 
McKenzie (3-7) scattered three hits while striking out five Bradley batters.
 
Emily Organ drove in the first Bradley run with an RBI double in the second inning.  With EIU leading 5-1 in the seventh, Austin Comstock hit a two-run homer after the inning was extended by a Panthers error.
 
EIU gave McKenzie the lead in the second with two runs against Bradley starter Abby Rusher (3-15).  Lexie Griffin drove in the first run of the inning followed by a Marshall Maddux RBI single to center.
 
The Panthers added three insurance runs in the bottom of the fifth scoring two of the three runs on a Braves error.  Marybeth Dyson scored the final run on a double steal of home.
 
Mo Hance was the lone Panther with multiple hits in the opener going 2-for-3 with two runs scored.
 
In the night cap EIU jumped out a big lead again and held off a seventh inning Bradley rally to win 8-5.
 
Rylan Gick (7-3) entered in the third for freshman starter Grace Lemke and tossed four scoreless innings for the win.  Bryanna French came in during the seventh to shut down a Bradley rally and collect her second save.
 
The Braves again jumped on the board first scoring in the first on an RBI by Ashley Breeding.
 
EIU took the lead with two runs in the second on back-to-back RBI singles to left by Chloe Wamboldt and Lizzie Stiverson.  Wamboldt led EIU with three hits, her seventh three-hit game this season.
 
Alisha Frederick paced the offense in the fourth with a two run single while Adysen Rios drove in two runs in the sixth as EIU scored three runs in each inning to pull out to an 8-1 lead.
 
In the seventh Bradley scored four runs to pull within striking distance with the tying run on deck.  Olivia Turner drove home two runs with the big hit of the inning for the Braves.  Turner had two hits with Austin Comstock leading Bradley's offense with three hits.  Kinsley Robertson (0-3) took the loss in the circle.
 
EIU used 15 position players with at-bats in the game with Frederick joining Wamboldt as Panthers with multiple hits going 2-for-3.

LIPSCOMB 7, TENNESSEE STATE 3
NASHVILLE - The Tennessee State softball team hosted the Lipscomb Bisons on Wednesday afternoon at Tiger Field. The Tigers fell 7-3, moving to 0-21 on the season.

Miriam Gordon got the start in the circle for Tennessee State, pitching 3.0 innings and allowing three runs on five hits with two walks. Tianna Salcido provided 3.1 innings of relief, surrendering four runs (one earned) on five hits, while Kristian Holder closed out the final 0.2 innings.

Jasmine Blackburn led the Tigers offensively with a strong 2-for-3 performance, driving in two runs, including a key two-RBI triple. Dani James and Tianna Salcido each added a hit and scored a run, while Kyra Taylor contributed a double. TSU finished with five hits in the contest.

Lipscomb struck first with two runs in the second inning and added another in the third to take an early 3-0 lead. The Tigers responded in the fourth inning when Blackburn delivered a two-out triple to right center, scoring James and Salcido to cut the deficit to 3-2.

The Bisons answered with single runs in the fifth and sixth innings to extend their lead to 5-2. Tennessee State pushed across another run in the sixth after Blackburn reached and later scored on an error, making it a 5-3 game.

Lipscomb added two insurance runs in the seventh inning to pull away. The Tigers were unable to respond in the bottom half, as the Bisons secured the midweek victory.

#12 MISSISSIPPI STATE 7, UT MARTIN 0
STARKVILLE, Miss. - The University of Tennessee at Martin softball team dropped a 7-0 decision on the road to 12th-ranked Mississippi State Wednesday at Nusz Park in Starkville.

Bulldog pitcher Peja Goold tossed a complete-game no-hitter for Mississippi State, striking out 13 Skyhawks and giving up just one walk.

Avary Makarewicz had the lone walk for UT Martin in the game, while Joleanna Fox and Ashtyn Green each had a strikeout in the circle.

LINDENWOOD 1, SAINT LOUIS 0
ST. CHARLES, Mo. - The Lindenwood Softball team (13-18, 2-7 OVC) ended their three game losing skid on Wednesday with a 1-0 walk-off win over Saint Louis. The Lions collected nine hits in the contest and limited the Billiken offense to just one hit for the entire game, while also not allowing a SLU base runner to advance past second base. 

Samantha Roulanaitis got the start this afternoon for the Lions and was lights out from the beginning. The Sophomore pitcher from Smithon, Ill carried a no hitter into the sixth inning before Saint Louis was finally able to sneak a hit down the left field line to lead off the inning. After giving up a two out walk in the top of the first, Roulanaitis didn't allow a base runner until the sixth inning as she struck out two batters and recorded four straight innings in which the Billikens went three up and three down as the score remained locked at zero heading to the bottom of the sixth. 

However, the Lions had their chances early on in the bottom of the first and third innings as Lindenwood had runners on first and second both times, but SLU's starting pitcher Riley Nelson was able to escape both jams to keep LU off the scoreboard. The only run of the contest would come in the bottom of the seventh inning after Teryn Brown led off the inning with an infield single to the second baseman and beat out the throw. After Brown advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt from Madisen Noll, Anna Sanders singled on the first pitch that she saw to put runners on the corners with one away in the inning. Jolie McMinn drew a two-out walk later in the inning to load the bases, and Sadie Sexauer would get hit by a pitch on a full count to end the game for the Lions in walk-off fashion. 

Offensively, both Noll and Sanders went 2/3 at the plate, while five other Lions recorded one hit. Kylee Crowder had the only extra base hit for the Lions, which was a one-out triple to right center in the bottom of the fourth inning.