EVANSVILLE, Ind.—University of Southern Indiana Softball held on for a 2-1 game-two victory to earn a Great Lakes Valley Conference doubleheader sweep of visiting Lewis University Saturday afternoon at the USI Softball Field. The No. 8 Screaming Eagles won game one, 4-1.
USI (38-8, 17-5 GLVC) returns to action next Saturday when it hosts Quincy University in a GLVC doubleheader at the USI Softball Field. Saturday’s games are Awareness Day for USI, while the Eagles’ final home games of the regular season against Truman State University April 23 represent Senior Day.
Game 1 | Southern Indiana 4, Lewis 1
The Eagles erupted for three runs off five hits in the bottom of the fourth inning to overcome a 1-0 deficit. Junior third baseman Mena Fulton (Bloomington, Indiana) had an RBI-single to tie the contest, while freshman outfielder Allison Schubert (Nicholasville, Kentucky) had a two-run single to give USI a 3-1 advantage.
Fulton, who was 2-of-3 with a pair of RBIs, had a run-scoring triple in the fifth frame to give freshman pitcher Jennifer Leonhardt (Louisville, Kentucky) a three-run cushion.
Leonhardt (22-1) allowed just one run off five hits in seven innings of work to earn her 19th straight win and GLVC-best 22nd victory of the year. She had three strike outs and just one walk.
Lewis (22-21, 10-12 GLVC) opened the scoring in the top of the third inning with a solo home run off the bat of third baseman Kendyl Strack.
Game 2 | Southern Indiana 2, Lewis 1
USI got a two-out, RBI-single off the bat of senior catcher Haley Hodges (Portage, Indiana) in the last half of the first inning to take a 1-0 lead. Junior first basemanMarleah Fossett (Brownsburg, Indiana) gave the Eagles a two-run cushion in the fifth inning with a two-out, RBI-double down the leftfield line.
The Flyers capitalized on a pair of USI errors in the seventh inning as they cut USI’s advantage in half. Clinging to a 2-1 lead and with runners at first and second and one out, sophomore pitcher Caitlyn Bradley (Forest, Indiana) induced a ground ball and a fly out in back-to-back at-bats to get out of the jam and preserve the Eagles’ one-run victory.
Bradley (6-2) earned the win for USI after giving up just one unearned run off four hits in seven innings of work. She had four strike outs and just one walk.
Southern Indiana 4, Lewis 1 (Apr 15, 2017 at Evansville, IN) (Game 1)
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Lewis…………… 001 000 0 -Â 1Â 5Â 1Â Â Â Â Â (22-20, 10-11 GLVC)
Southern Indiana…. 000 310 X -Â 4Â 7Â 2Â Â Â Â Â (37-8, 16-5 GLVC)
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Pitchers: Lewis – Sanders, Dara; Boelte, Taylor(6) and DeMasi, Sarah. Southern Indiana –
Leonhardt, Jennifer and Hodges, Haley.
Win-Leonhardt, Jennifer(22-1)Â Loss-Sanders, Dara(15-6)Â T-1:35Â A-111
HR LEWIS – Strack, Kendyl (2).
Weather: 70s, sunny
Game: 45-LEWIS
Southern Indiana 2, Lewis 1 (Apr 15, 2017 at Evansville, IN) (Game 2)
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Lewis…………… 000 000 1 -Â 1Â 4Â 0Â Â Â Â Â (22-21, 10-12 GLVC)
Southern Indiana…. 100 010 X -Â 2Â 7Â 2Â Â Â Â Â (38-8, 17-5 GLVC)
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Pitchers: Lewis – Sanders, Dara and DeMasi, Sarah. Southern Indiana – Bradley, Caitlyn and
Hodges, Haley.
Win-Bradley, Caitlyn(6-2)Â Loss-Sanders, Dara(15-7)Â T-1:33Â A-111
Weather: 80s, sunny
Game: 46-LEWIS
