USI (18-8, 4-0 GLVC) spotted the Prairie Stars a 5-0 lead in game one before a five-run sixth inning evened the contest. The Eagles sent nine batters to the plate and got run-scoring hits from sophomore catcher Sammie Kihega (Greenfield, Indiana), freshman pitcher Hailey Gotshall (Lucerne, Indiana) and freshman outfielder Kennedy Nalley (Huntingburg, Indiana), the later of which tied the game with a two-run single.
After senior pitcher/designated player Katie Back (Indianapolis, Indiana) held the Stars scoreless in the top of the seventh, USI went back to work in the bottom half of the inning. USI opened the frame with three straight singles, including a one by Back, who also had a double in the sixth. That set the table for Kihega, who pushed across the game-winning run with a fielder’s choice.
Back (4-1) got the win for USI after giving up just one hit in one inning of work.
Illinois Springfield (18-10, 2-6 GLVC) built a commanding 5-0 lead by scoring two in the third and two more in the fourth. A lead-off home run in the fifth would prove to be the last run the Stars would score the rest of the day.
USI, which had just three hits in the first five innings, erupted for a combined eight hits in the sixth and seventh frames. The Eagles, who had a combined 19 hits in their final six offensive innings on the day, continued its offensive surge early in the second game.
The Eagles took advantage of an error to score three times in the bottom of the first inning and take a 3-0 lead. Sophomore first baseman Lexi Fair(Greenwood, Indiana), who was a combined 4-of-6 on the day with two runs scored and two RBI, hit a two-out triple to push across the first two runs, while Back, who also was a combined 4-of-6 at the plate, drove Fair in with an RBI-single in the next at-bat.
USI, for the second time on the day, sent nine batters to the plate in the third inning as it tacked on five more runs to extend its advantage to 8-0. Kihega had a two-run double to push across the first two runs, while freshman pitcher Josie Newman (Indianapolis, Indiana) pushed across the third run on a fielder’s choice. Following a wild pitch that saw the Eagles score their fourth run of the inning, sophomore outfielder Mackenzie Bedrick (Brownsburg, Indiana) hit a two-out, RBI-triple to score the fifth run.
The Eagles threatened to score more in the fourth, but a ground-ball double-play ended the threat and kept the score 8-0.
Newman (4-3), meanwhile, was strong in the pitcher’s circle, where she scattered three hits throughout five innings to pick up the complete-game shutout. Newman finished with three strikeouts and retired the final five batters she faced to earn the win.
USI returns to action Saturday at noon when it travels to Kirksville, Missouri, to take on Truman State University in a GLVC doubleheader. The Eagles also visit Quincy University Sunday at noon in Quincy, Illinois, before returning to the USI Softball Field April 2-3 to take on Rockhurst University and William Jewell College.
