UE to play three games
Another slight schedule change has taken place as the University of Evansville softball team prepares for three non-conference games this weekend in Carbondale, Ill. UE’s original trip that was set for Chattanooga has been cancelled to the forecast of inclement weather.
The Aces will now play a pair of games on Friday. Evansville opens the day at 4:30 p.m. against Ohio University before playing Saint Louis at 7 p.m. No games will take place on Saturday. UE will wrap up the weekend on Sunday with a 10 a.m. game versus Creighton
Last weekend, the Aces had a stellar 4-game sweep at Southern. Sophomore Mea Adams batted .556 with five hits in nine at-bats in the weekend series. Adams began the week 0-3 but finished up the weekend going 5-for-6 in Saturday’s doubleheader. Adams was 2-3 in game one on Saturday before notching a perfect 3-for-3 effort with two runs and an RBI in the series finale. Just as impressive was her performance on the basepaths as she was a perfect 5-5 in stolen base attempts.
Senior Emily Lockhart threw two of the best games of her college career, including a no-hitter. Lockhart had a strong effort in game two on Friday, throwing six innings. She struck out 10 batters and gave up just one run on three hits in a 5-4 Evansville win. That momentum carried over to Saturday as she recorded the first no-hitter of her career in an 8-0 UE win. Lockhart struck out seven batters in the win. She finished with an 0.82 ERA for the weekend and gave up just three hits while striking out 17 batters.
The second weekend of action for UE junior Katie McLean saw her finish with a .385 batting average and a perfect 3-3 showing in stolen bases. In a 3-1 series-opening win over Southern, McLean was 2-4 with a run. While she went 0-3 in game two, she did reach base via a walk. Batting leadoff in both games on Saturday, McLean opened the day with a 1-3 game posting her second run and walk of the series. She added a 2-3 game with another run and an RBI as the Aces clinched the series sweep.
Evansville’s first opponent in Carbondale will be Ohio University. The Bobcats are 6-3 so far and picked up Sunday wins last weekend over Campbell and Charlotte. Saint Louis will be the second opponent on Friday evening. The Billikens are 0-5 this season with losses to MVC squads UNI and Drake last weekend in Cedar Falls. UE completes the weekend on Sunday against former MVC foe Creighton. The Blue Jays are 4-5 overall, but went 3-1 last weekend, defeating Northwestern State while picking up two wins over Arkansas-Pine Bluff.
