Aces and Bulldogs square off at 10 a.m. on Wednesday

EVANSVILLE, Ind. – The Missouri Valley Conference Championship opens on Wednesday for the University of Evansville softball team with the Purple Aces facing Drake at 10 a.m. in Carbondale, Ill.  ESPN+ will have the live coverage.

UE at the MVC Championship

– This marks the third year in a row that the Aces will play in the opening game of the championship, which pits the 8th seed against the 9th

– UE took on Loyola in each of the last two MVC Championship openers with the Ramblers taking both games

– Evansville looks for its first win in the championship since 2013 when the 7th-seeded Aces advanced to the championship game where they fell to UNI by a score of 2-1

– The 2013 championship was the last time Evansville and Drake met at the tournament; UE won by a 2-1 final, defeating the #2 Bulldogs on their way to the final game

Last Time Out

– Scoring three runs in the first inning, Northern Iowa added six in the third to pull away for a 9-1 win on Sunday in Cedar Falls

– Zoe Frossard picked up an RBI single, scoring Alexa Davis in the top of the second

– Megan Brenton made the start with nine earned runs scoring in 2 2/3 innings

Finishing Strong

– Since March 19, Jess Willsey has batted .329 with 27 hits in 82 at-bats

– She has been even better over the last 11 games, hitting .382 in a stretch that included an 8-game hit streak

– The recent streak has vaulted Willsey into the team lead with a season mark of .282

– Willsey finished the Illinois State series with five hits in seven trips to the plate

– In game two against Southern Illinois, Willsey was a perfect 3-3 with four RBI in a 4-0 win for the Aces; the win came less than a day after SIU opened the series with a 17-1 victory

– Willsey has six home runs on the season, which is tied for second on the team

12-Game Hit Streak

– Between April 11 and April 30, Marah Wood posted a 12-game hit streak, which marked the longest for the Aces since Eryn Gould posted a 12-game streak in 2019

Marah Wood begins the weekend with a 12-game hit streak, which is the longest for the team in 2023

– During the streak, Wood recorded 18 hits in 43 at-bats (.419) while picking up multiple hits in five of those games

– It was the longest streak in her college career as she registered a hit in eight consecutive games in 2022.

Wrapping up her Career

– Batting .320 over the last eight games, senior Hannah Hood is wrapping up her senior season on a strong note

– She has accumulated 8 hits in her last 25 trips to the plate to improve her season mark to .270

– Hood earned MVC Player of the Week recognition on Feb. 21 after batting .571 with six runs, five walks, five RBI, four stolen bases and two home runs in the home-opening tournament

EVANSVILLE, Ind. –  University of Evansville fifth-year first baseman Chase Hug and junior second baseman Kip Fougerousse had back-to-back RBI base hits in the bottom of the seventh inning on Tuesday night to help the Purple Aces rally for a 6-5 win over the visiting Bellarmine Knights at German American Bank Field at Charles H. Braun Stadium in Evansville.

“Give credit to Bellarmine, I thought they played an outstanding game tonight,” said UE head coach Wes Carroll.  “We were just able to put together some great at-bats there in the seventh inning to go ahead late.  Then, our bullpen was outstanding tonight to help us secure the win.”

With Bellarmine leading 5-4 going into the bottom of the seventh, graduate third baseman Eric Roberts roped a lead-off single to right-center field.  With Roberts running on a 3-1 pitch, Hug crushed a double that got past the Bellarmine right-fielder and two-hopped the wall in right to score Roberts from first and tie the game at 5-5.  After a passed ball advanced Hug to third base, Fougerousse rocketed a ball up the middle to score Hug and give UE a 6-5 advantage.

From there, senior reliver Jakob Meyer (1-3) worked a scoreless eighth inning to cap two scoreless, hitless innings on the mound, and junior closer Nate Hardman worked a perfect ninth inning to earn his seventh save of the year and help Evansville improve to 29-19 overall.

Bellarmine opened the contest scoring a run in the first inning, only to have Evansville answer back with three in the bottom of the first, as UE took advantage of wildness from the Bellarmine starter to jump to an early lead.  The Knights would not back down though, scoring two runs in the second inning on a two-out, two-run double by outfielder Dylan Byerly to tie the game at 3-3.

Roberts would lead off the bottom of the second inning with his first triple of the year to right-center field, and he came around to score on a sacrifice fly by Hug to give UE a 4-3 lead.  The score would remain 4-3 until the fifth inning, when back-to-back two-out doubles by Bellarmine designated hitter Casey Sorg and second baseman Peyton Back gave the Knights a 5-4 lead.  The score would remain 5-4 until the game-deciding bottom of the seventh inning.

Roberts and Fougerousse both had two hits for UE, with Roberts adding three runs.  Hug drove in a pair for UE.  Byerly paced the Bellarmine (11-38) attack by going 3-for-5 with a run scored and two RBI.

Evansville will return to Missouri Valley Conference play for its final home series of the 2023 season this weekend, as the Purple Aces will entertain the Bradley Braves at German American Bank Field at Charles H. Braun Stadium.  The series will begin Friday night at 6 p.m. and continue on Saturday at 2 p.m. and Sunday at 1 p.m.  Saturday’s game will honor all mothers, as all moms will get in free to honor Mother’s Day.  Sunday will be “Senior Day” for UE, as the Purple Aces will honor pitchers Jarrett Blunt, John MacCauley, and Michael Parks, outfielder Danny Borgstrom, utility player Eric Roberts, and catcher Max Malley prior to their final home baseball game at UE.

Friday’s and Sunday’s games can be seen on ESPN+, with Saturday’s game available on ESPN3.  All three games can also be heard on 107.1 FM-WJPS and the Old National Bank/Purple Aces Sports Network from Learfield.

OXFORD, Ala. – The Ohio Valley Conference announced during its postseason awards banquet Tuesday that University of Southern Indiana Softball sophomore pitcher Josie Newman (Indianapolis, Indiana) and senior designated player Allie Goodin (Evansville, Indiana) earned All-Ohio Valley Conference first-team honors. Goodin was also named OVC co-Player of the Year on Tuesday evening.
 
Goodin paced the Screaming Eagles with a .406 batting average, 15 doubles, six home runs, and 37 RBIs. Her average, doubles, and RBI numbers rank among the top three of the OVC. Her batting average is top 50, and her doubles total is top 20, respectively, in the nation. She was also inside the top ten in the OVC with 85 total bases, a .435 on-base percentage, and a .664 slugging percentage.
 
In the conference season, Goodin hit .442 with eight doubles, six home runs, and 30 RBIs. In OVC play, Goodin led the OVC in batting average and RBIs and is top-six in doubles, home runs, on-base percentage (.470), and slugging percentage (.779). She was also first in OVC play with 60 total bases.
 
In the rubber game against Tennessee State University on April 23, Goodin led USI to a 5-1 win to clinch a series win against the Tigers. Goodin had a big performance with two home runs and five RBIs. Her multi-home run game was the first by a USI player this season and the fourth such game in Goodin’s USI career. Her last multi-home run game was May 13, 2022, against Lindenwood University. In USI’s 8-7 win in game 2 against Tennessee Tech University on May 6, Goodin had a clutch two-run home run that tied the game 7-7 before USI won in walk-off fashion.
 
“Allie has been an irreplaceable part of our offense for her entire career, but this year has been exceptional,” USI Head Coach Sue Kunkle said. “After having to back away from pitching this season, she has embraced her role as our offensive leader.”
 
This season, Goodin moved into the top ten in USI Softball’s all-time history with 18 career home runs. She also surpassed 100 career RBIs, sitting just outside the top ten in USI history.

Newman led the pitching rotation with a 15-10 record, 2.32 ERA, 139 strikeouts, and 17 complete games with six shutouts. The right-hander made 22 starts in 26 appearances, totaling 145 innings of work. Newman held opposing batters to a .206 average. Overall, Newman finished the regular season tied for first in the OVC in wins and complete games, alone in first in strikeouts and shutouts, and second in innings pitched and opposing batting average. Her shutout and strikeout totals are top-20 and top-75, respectively, in the nation.

In OVC play, Newman’s 10 OVC wins were first in the league along with her 95.1 innings pitched, 83 strikeouts, 14 starts, and 13 complete games. Her three OVC shutouts tied for first in conference-only action.

During the season, Newman posted two one-hit shutouts during the non-conference season and had three starts with 10 or more strikeouts. Plus, she had a dominant stretch between March 7-12 when USI competed at The Spring Games in Florida. Newman went 4-0, and all four victories and starts during that week were complete games. Newman struck out 31 batters in 28 innings pitched, and she struck out nine in two of the four starts.

“Josie has been a workhorse for us this season, displaying a strong presence on the mound and her great ability to control her pitches,” Kunkle commented. “After tearing her ACL at the NCAA II World Series last May, she put the work in to come back stronger.”

This season, Newman moved into the top eight in USI Softball’s all-time history with 324 career strikeouts and inside the top ten with 12 career shutouts. She sits just outside the top eight with 32 career wins.

Newman was named to the OVC’s Preseason Players to Watch List before the 2023 season started. Newman also earned OVC Pitcher of the Week three times this season, most recently on April 3 and in consecutive weeks on March 13 and 20. The last two honors came after series wins in OVC play against Lindenwood and the University of Tennessee at Martin.

Following the USI Softball program’s first season in the Ohio Valley Conference and as an NCAA Division I program, Goodin and Newman are the first-ever USI Softball players to earn All-OVC accolades, and Goodin is the first to win OVC Player of the Year laurels.

“Both Allie and Josie have done a great job this year, having successful seasons while adjusting to the challenges and the new opponents from the transition to the D-I level,” Kunkle added.

USI Softball begins tournament play Wednesday at the 2023 OVC Softball Championship. The Screaming Eagles are the No. 3 seed after going 20-21 overall and 13-9 in the conference season. USI gets a first-round bye and will play Wednesday at 3 p.m., awaiting the winner of the 6/7 matchup between Tennessee State and Lindenwood on Wednesday morning.

EVANSVILLE, Ind. – University of Southern Indiana Basketball announced that it will play in the Duke Blue Devil Challenge, a four-team, three-game round-robin tournament organized by the Gazelle Group, in November. USI is slated to play at LaSalle University November 17; Bucknell University November 20; and Duke University November 24.

Duke will host three games at Cameron Indoor Stadium (Bucknell on November 17; La Salle on November 21; and USI on November 24), while LaSalle will host a pair of contests (Bucknell on November 14; USI on November 17). Game times are to be announced.

USI was 16-17 in their first season as a Division I program, earning a postseason bid to the College Basketball Invitational and the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament. USI Head Coach Stan Gouard hopes to build momentum as he returns for his fourth year at the helm of the Screaming Eagles.

“We are excited about the opportunity to play at such a historic venue,” said Gouard. “For years Duke has been the blue blood of college basketball with its rich tradition. Coach K (Mike Krzyzewski) has left that program in a great place and Jon Scheyer has done a spectacular job of picking up where Coach K left off.

“Playing at Cameron Indoor Stadium, and in front the Cameron Crazies, will be a moment in time that our student athletes will never forget,” continue Gouard. “As we enter into our second season of the Division I era, it is important to compete against teams that are going to help our program and our University grow on a national level and playing at Duke does that.”

Duke is coming off a 27-9 season last year, winning the ACC Tournament and earning the fifth seed in the NCAA East Regional. LaSalle reached the quarterfinals of the Atlantic 10 Tournament in 2023 after posting a 15-19 mark, while Bucknell was 12-20 last season and earned a trip to the Patriot League Tournament.
The full schedule for challenge is:

November 14: Bucknell at La Salle
November 17: USI at La Salle; Bucknell at Duke
November 20: USI at Bucknell
November 21: La Salle at Duke
November 24: USI at Duke