ST. CHARLES, Mo. – University of Southern Indiana Baseball allowed three runs in the bottom of the eighth and lost the series opener at Lindenwood University, 6-3, Friday afternoon in St. Charles, Missouri. USI, which continues to search for the first win in the conference play, watched its record go to 7-19, 0-4 in the OVC, while Ball State goes to 4-22, 1-3 OVC.
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USI had the early momentum with a pair of first inning runs to take a 2-0. Junior designated hitter Tucker Ebest (Austin, Texas) knocked in the first run with a ground out, while freshman third baseman Caleb Niehaus (Newburgh, Indiana) pushed the second tally across with a single up the middle.
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After Lindenwood knotted the game at 2-2 with a two-run third, the Eagles took the lead for a second time with a tally in the fourth on a bases-loaded walk drawn by senior catcher Lucas McNew (Floyds Knobs, Indiana). The Lions, however, bounced back in the bottom half of the frame to re-tie the game, 3-3.
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The score remained tied until the bottom of the eighth when the Lions took the lead for the first time scoring three times for the eventual final score of 6-3.
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On the mound for USI, junior right-hander Carter Stamm (Jasper, Indiana) took the loss for the Eagles in relief. Stamm (1-1) allowed three runs, loading the bases in the eighth on a walk and two hit batters which would come in on a pair of hits allowed by junior right-hander Cory Anderson (Linton, Indiana).
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Sophomore right-hander Tyler Hutson (Villa Hills, Kentucky) started ad go the no decision. Hutson went 3-2 innings, allowing three runs on five hits and four walks, while striking out three.
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USI, once again, got great middle relief from junior left-hander Blake Ciuffetelli (Newburgh, Indiana). Ciuffetelli blanked the Lions for 3.1 innings, allowing two hits and two walks, while striking out five batters.
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The Eagles have lost 10-straight games, the longest streak since 2006.
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Up Next for the Eagles:Â Â
The Eagles and the Lions resume OVC three-game series Saturday at 1 p.m. The series finale is Sunday at 1 p.m.
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Eagles grounded by Lions’ late rally
Visiting with FFA members at the StatehouseÂ
As a national youth organization promoting leadership, personal growth and career success through agricultural education, FFA is making a positive impact in the lives of its over 11,500 Hoosier members.Â
FFA offers hands-on experiences like conducting research in a laboratory or working in agricultural communications, which give students in rural, suburban and urban communities more tools for future success.Â
During National FFA Week, it was an honor to meet with and welcome FFA officers to the Statehouse (pictured). These visitors were presented with Senate Concurrent Resolution 16, recognizing the National FFA Organization and the Indiana FFA Association for their exemplary work in the advancement of agricultural education in Indiana and across the country.
To learn more about FFA and join one of the 211 chapters across the state, click here. Participating middle and high school students need to be enrolled in an agriculture course, and there is even an FFA chapter for online students in Indiana.
I always enjoy meeting with young Hoosiers from our communities, and learning more about their goals and aspirations. These are our future farmers, teachers, doctors, scientists and business owners, and it’s great to see them civically engaged and involved with their state government.
ISU Spring Invitational set for Sunday and Monday
Aces head to Terre Haute
EVANSVILLE, Ind. – In their final tune-up before the Missouri Valley Conference Championship, the University of Evansville women’s golf team will take part in the ISU Spring Invitational this weekend.
Set for Sunday and Monday, the event will take at the Country Club of Terre Haute. The six-team field consists of Indiana State, Eastern Illinois, Green Bay, UIC, Valparaiso and the Purple Aces.
Day one opens with an 11 a.m. ET shotgun start before Monday’s second round opens with a 10 a.m. ET shotgun start. Eighteen holes will be played each day with the par set for 72 and the yardage playing at 6,041.
Evansville is coming off a 13th-place finish at the Golfweek/AGT Intercollegiate in Pawley’s Island, South Carolina. Pacing the team was Kate Petrova, who earned a tie for 19th with a score of 222. She posted the low round of the event in Tuesday’s second round, shooting an even 71.
Magdalena Borisova was the second-highest finisher for UE. Highlighted by an opening-round total of 74, Borisova tied for 39th with a 230. Mallory Russell finished the tournament two strokes behind her, notching a 232 to tie for 46th.
EPD DAILY ACTIVITY REPORT
EPD DAILY ACTIVITY REPORT FOOTNOTE: Â EPD DAILY ACTIVITY REPORT information was provided by the EPD and posted by the City-County-County Observer without opinion, bias, or editing.
Senator Braun, Ernst and Grassley introduce DEFINE WOTUS Act
Senator Mike Braun, Senator Joni Ernst, and Senator Chuck Grassley have introduced the Define WOTUS Act, which will codify a congressionally mandated definition of what constitutes WOTUS, or Waters of the United States. If passed, the bill would reassert Congressional responsibility to define this important term for farmers. The definition in the Define WOTUS Act also makes substantial improvements over various administrative attempts to define the term by clearly outlining what is, and is not, a federally regulated waterway.
It is time that Congress steps up to define WOTUS and end the regulatory whiplash.
“Regulations for what falls under ‘Waters of the U.S.’ have ping-ponged back and forth for years,â€Â said Senator Braun. “Farmers and families need a reasonable, practical definition for WOTUS, and that’s why I’m introducing the Define WOTUS Act with my colleagues today.”
“Iowa farmers, landowners and developers care about the quality and health of their land, but multiple rules changes over the past several years have led to uncertainty and confusion. It’s time to put a stop to federal bureaucrats’ heavy-handed approach and create a clear, commonsense definition of WOTUS,â€Â Grassley said.
“Vague and expanded regulations allow the Biden administration to tell Iowans what they can and can’t do on their own land. As over 46,000 Iowa small business owners brace for the impact of Biden’s WOTUS rule, I’m fighting to clarify what is and, most importantly, what is not a water of the U.S.,â€Â said Senator Ernst.
The bill differs from EPA’s regulations under the Biden, Trump, and Obama Administrations in several important ways:
- Wetlands: Unlike previous definitions, the bill restricts federal authority to wetlands that “abut.â€
- Ephemeral Waters: The bill restricts WOTUS to streams that flow at least 185 days a year—a common recommendation from agriculture stakeholders.
- Exclusions: The bill includes more exclusions than previous rule—including an exclusion for snowpack melt requested by agriculture stakeholders as well as a new exclusion for drain tiling as a subsurface drainage system.
- Beyond Visual Inspection:Â The bill also restricts waters that require more than a visual inspection to determine their federal status as not WOTUS. This is an important mechanism requested by many stakeholders to ensure that the definition is as predictable and uniformly implemented as possible.
BACKGROUND:
- The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) derive their authority to regulate waters of the United States (WOTUS) from the Federal Water Pollution Control Act Amendments of 1972. While the term “WOTUS†defines the scope of EPA’s jurisdiction (including multiple permitting programs, water quality standards, and enforcement mechanisms), the term was not clearly defined in statute—and still isn’t five decades later.
- Since the 2006 Supreme Court case Rapanos v. United States, WOTUS has been interpreted to include any waters with a “significant nexus†to navigable-in-fact waters, determined on a case-by-case basis. This case-by-case test can lead to contradicting determinations for the same tract of land by two bureaucrats from EPA. The post-Rapanos interpretation of WOTUS has been detrimental for American farmers and ranchers.
Biden Administration Rulemaking: On December 30, 2022, EPA announced its Biden-era WOTUS rule. President Biden says his rule leans on a “pre-2015†interpretation of WOTUS and, therefore, should be exempt from the critiques levied against the Obama-era Clean Water Rule. However, the same fundamental concerns that led stakeholders to oppose the Clean Water rule (e.g., regulatory ambiguity under the “significant nexus†test, a reliance on case-by-case analysis, and regulation of ephemeral and intermittent flows) existed before the Obama Administration and persist under the Biden Administration.
Pending Supreme Court Decision: The Supreme Court is currently considering a case, Sackett v. EPA, which may strike down the “significant nexus†test, an underpinning of the Biden WOTUS rule. It is time that Congress steps up to define WOTUS and end the regulatory whiplash.
THUNDERBOLTS RALLY FOR 4-3 OVERTIME WIN IN BIRMINGHAMÂ
Pelham, Ala.:  With potential home-ice playoff implications on the line, the Thunderbolts came through with a clutch performance by coming back in the third period to force overtime, where they defeated the Birmingham Bulls 4-3 on Thursday night in Pelham.  The Thunderbolts’ next home game will be on Saturday, April 1st  against the Knoxville Ice Bears at 7:00pm CT.  For tickets, call (812)422-BOLT (2658), go to EvansvilleThunderbolts.com, or visit the Ford Center Ticket Office.
Evansville struck first as Matthew Hobbs cashed in on a net-front pass from Jeremy Masella on the power play to make it 1-0, also assisted by Conner Jean at 6:23.  The Bulls tied the game back up as Michael Gillespie scored at 18:22, before Gillespie put the Bulls ahead for the first time, 2-1 with another goal 4:29 into the second period.  Down 2-1 in the third period, another power play goal from Masella at 6:54 tied the game from Matt Dorsey and Jean.  At 12:55, Evansville took their second lead of the game as Cameron Cook scored from Aaron Huffnagle and Tanner Butler on the power play to make it a 3-2 Thunderbolts lead.  Birmingham managed to tie the game once again as Jake Pappalardo scored at 17:05, forcing overtime.  At 2:15 of overtime, Cook became the overtime hero with his second goal of the game, scoring on a rebound from Huffnagle and Felix Sasser to lead the Thunderbolts to a much-needed 4-3 comeback victory.
Cook scored two goals, Masella tallied a goal and assist, and Hobbs finished with one goal.  Huffnagle and Jean each notched a pair of assists, while Trevor Gorsuch stopped 24 of 27 shots for his 15th win of the season.  Tonight was the first time all season, and the first time since 1/1/22 at Peoria, that the Thunderbolts scored three power play goals in a single game.  The Thunderbolts remain in 5th place in the SPHL standings but have closed the distance behind 4th-Place Roanoke to .014 win percentage, at which a finish in 4th place or higher would secure home-ice advantage in the first round of the playoffs next month.  Roanoke plays the 1st-Place Peoria Rivermen this Friday and Saturday, and any losses will help further bridge the gap that Evansville trails.  The Thunderbolts and Bulls meet again on Friday, April 7th at Ford Center.
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