EVANSVILLE, Ind. – University of Southern Indiana Baseball lost the three-game series finale to Southeast Missouri State University, 14-2, Saturday afternoon at the USI Baseball Field. USI watched its record go to 9-22 and 2-7 in the OVC, while SEMO goes to 18-16, 7-2 OVC.  USI was under the gun from the start of the game as SEMO got the lead with a run in the top of the first. USI tied the game, 1-1, in the second when junior designated hitter Tucker Ebest (Austin, Texas) smacked his team-best fifth home run of the season over the right field wall.  The Redhawks took command for good in the top of the third when they scored four times to take a 5-1 lead. USI cut the deficit in the third with a single tally in the bottom of the third on a RBI-single by junior centerfielder Ren Tachioka (Japan).  SEMO pulled away with a two run fourth and five runs in the fifth before finishing out the 14-2 game with two more in the seventh.  USI sophomore right-hander Tyler Hutson (Villa Hills, Kentucky) received the loss on the mound for the Eagles. Hutson (1-5) allowed seven runs, six earned, on eight hits and two walks in 3.1 innings of work.  Up Next for the Eagles:  USI continues the four-game homestand Tuesday when it hosts St. Louis University for the second game of a home-and-home series in 2023. The Eagles took the first game of the series on the road, 10-2, on March 14. USI senior centerfielder Evan Kahre (Evansville, Indiana) led the Eagles with three hits and three runs scored in the victory.  St. Louis finished off a three-game series win at St. Bonaventure University with a 7-5 win Saturday in New York. The Billikens have won six of their last seven games and are 8-9 since the Eagles snapped their 10-game winning streak last month.
Following the mid-week game with St. Louis, USI returns to OVC action with a visit to the University of Tennessee at Martin for a three-game series April 14-16.
Amendment fails to bring Indiana any closer to marijuana legalization
A hemp product discussion was first on the list Thursday as the House debated Senate Bill 20, which deals with alcohol and hemp matters.
The bill was authored by Sen. Liz Brown, R-Fort Wayne, Sen. Linda Rogers, R-Granger, and Sen. Chip Perfect, R-Lawrenceburg.
Rep. Justin Moed, D-Indianapolis, offered an amendment to the bill that he said would delete some words regarding the definition of cannabis flour and cannabis.
Rep. Christopher Judy, R-Fort Wayne, opposed the amendment, saying it would essentially exceed the 0.3% threshold. Judy said he would support cannabis legalization but not by this route.
According to federal statute, cannabis containing 0.3% or less of THC is considered hemp, while cannabis containing more than 0.3% of THC is considered marijuana.
Following the meeting, Indiana House Democratic Leader Rep. Phil GiaQuinta, D-Fort Wayne, released a statement regarding the amendment.
“Not only will legalizing marijuana bring Indiana into the 21st Century and boost our economy, it will help Hoosiers—current and prospective—who could benefit from the legal use of medical marijuana. From chronic pain to epilepsy, medical marijuana can change lives,” he said.
“Legalizing marijuana in Indiana would help not just Hoosiers with medical needs already living here, but it would protect those traveling through our state with a valid prescription from one of the 37 states with common-sense marijuana laws from getting in legal trouble.â€
Evansville, In.: Behind a 29-save performance from Zane Steeves, timely goals would lead the Thunderbolts to a 2-1 win over the Birmingham Bulls on Friday night at Ford Center, as Evansville heads into the playoffs with a 20-8 record on Ford Center ice in the regular season.  Details on date(s), opponent, and time for the first home game of the playoffs at Ford Center will be announced after seeding is finalized on Saturday night.
Evansville trailed early in the game, as Jared Bethune opened the scoring at 9:30 of the first period.  On a power play chance later in the period, Scott Kirton tied the game up at 1-1 from Tanner Butler and Matt Dorsey.  Following a scoreless second period, and many great saves by both goaltenders, Evansville broke through at 9:50 of the third period as Felix Sasser scored from Butler and Conner Jean to give Evansville a 2-1 lead.  The Bulls would pull goaltender Hayden Stewart and had a late power play to go on a 6-on-4 attack, however, the Thunderbolts held on to win 2-1.
Kirton and Sasser each finished with one goal, Butler tallied two assists, and Zane Steeves stopped 29 of 30 shots for his 13th win of the season.  With Knoxville defeating Roanoke tonight, the Thunderbolts can still climb into 4th place and gain home-ice advantage on Saturday with a win of any kind in Birmingham, and another Roanoke regulation loss to Knoxville.  The Thunderbolts and Bulls meet again on Saturday, April 8th in Pelham.
Individual game tickets and group packages are on sale for this 2022-23 season.  Season tickets for the 2023-24 season are now on sale as well.  Call 812-422-BOLT or visit our all-new website (www.evansvillethunderbolts.com) for details.
EVANSVILLE, Ind. – University of Southern Indiana Baseball rallied to knocked off Southeast Missouri State University, 9-6, Friday evening at the USI Baseball Field. USI watched its record go to 9-21 and 2-6 in the OVC, while SEMO goes to 17-16, 6-2 OVC.  The Redhawks jumped out to a 3-0 lead after an inning-and-a-half, scoring on a first inning solo shot and a second inning two-run blast.  USI rallied to take a 5-3 lead with five unanswered runs in the bottom of the second and third frames. Eagles’ junior first baseman Jack Ellis (Jeffersonville, Indiana) closed the gap to 3-2 in the second with a two-run bullet over the left center fence, while junior leftfielder Gavin McLarty (Buckner, Kentucky) gave USI a 5-3 lead with a bases-clearing, three-run double in the third.  SEMO chipped away at the two-run USI advantage and tied the game with a single tally in the fourth and fifth innings. The Eagles took back the lead in the bottom of the fifth, 6-5, on a RBI-single by junior rightfielder Steven Molinet (Elberfeld, Indiana), scoring Ellis, who singled and stole second to get into scoring position.  USI would go on to extend the lead in the fifth to 7-5 when junior centerfielder Ren Tachioka (Japan) knocked in Molinet with a single to right field. McLarty sealed the victory in the bottom of the sixth when he drove in his fourth and fifth runs of the contest to increase the lead to four runs, 9-5.  The USI hurlers took over from that point, blanking SEMO in the three of the final four innings, allowing a tallying in the ninth before closing out the 9-6 victory. USI sophomore right-hander Gavin Seebold (Jeffersonville, Indiana) picked the win in relief, throwing the four-plus in the final five frames.  Seebold (2-3) allowed two runs on three hits, three walks, and four hit batters, while striking out a season-high six in 4.1 innings of work. Sophomore right-hander Adam Weihe (Louisville, Kentucky) picked up his first save of the season after getting the Eagles out of the ninth inning bases-loaded jam, allowing an inherited runner on one hit.  Up Next for the Eagles:  The Eagles and the Redhawks conclude the three-game set Saturday with a noon contest at the USI Baseball Field.   Following Saturday’s series finale, USI continues the four-game homestand Tuesday when it hosts St. Louis University for the second game of a home-and-home series in 2023. The Eagles took the first game of the series on the road, 10-2, on March 14. USI senior centerfielder Evan Kahre (Evansville, Indiana) led the Eagles with three hits and three runs scored in the victory.
INDIANAPOLIS—Focusing on a specific section of the controversial House Bill 1608 that initially prohibited teachers from using a child’s preferred name or pronoun without parental consent, Democratic senators introduced amendments to soften the bill’s language, which led to some terse exchanges with Republicans across the aisle.
Sen. Stacey Donato, R-Logansport, speaking in opposition to an amendment by Sen. Shelli Yoder, D-Bloomington. Donato was one of the co-sponsors of HB 1608. Photo by Xain Ballenger TheStatehouseFile.com.
Out of the multiple amendments that were presented before the Senate, onlyAmendment 12, authored by Sen. Stacey Donato, R-Logansport, was adopted, which eliminated the requirement to receive consent from parents for teachers to honor a student’s request to be called a different gender or pronoun.
The bill’s amended language now requires that the school notify the child’s parent within five days of receiving the request from the child to use a different name or pronoun.
Considered Indiana’s version of Florida’s controversial “Don’t Say Gay” bill, HB 1557, the bill brought hundreds of protestors to the Indiana Statehouse in February and March, from parents of LGBTQ+ youth to teachers themselves.
After trying to eliminate the bill altogether, Senate Democrats took aim at softening HB 1608 by bringing forth amendments to lessen its intensity.
Sen. Shelli Yoder, D-Bloomington, presented one of her amendments to HB 1608. Photo by Xain Ballenger, TheStatehouseFile.com
Sen. Shelli Yoder, D-Bloomington, authored multiple amendments attempting to make notable changes to the bill, such as introducing a section stating schools would not be allowed to punish a teacher for using a pronoun or nickname that a child requests. Despite authoring six, she only called down two.
In talking before the full Senate during HB 1608’s second reading, Yoder shared that her main problem with the bill was the portion regarding using a child’s desired pronouns, rather than the main “gist†of the bill that prohibits the teaching of sexual materials to young children.
Of all of her amendments, Yoder considered Amendment 11 “the most compassionate and the most common sense.†The amendment would add a provision requiring teachers tell students requesting a name or pronoun change that their parents will have to be notified. The students would then be able to revoke their request.
Yoder said her amendment’s goal was to protect children from potential danger in their homes by offering them an “out.â€
Sen. Rodney Pol, D-Portage, speaks on an amendment by Sen. Shelli Yoder, D-Bloomington. Photo by Xain Ballenger, TheStatehouseFile.com
“This amendment does create a space in 1608 for a student or a young person to be able to have that conversation with their parent.â€
According to a recent study from Chapin Hall, a public policy research institute at the University of Chicago, LGBTQ young people are 120% more likely to experience homelessness than non-LGBTQ youth.
In a tense debate, Sen. Liz Brown, R-Fort Wayne, told Yoder she was strongly against her amendment.
Brown said that she previously joked when discussing the bill that children aren’t always honest and forthcoming with their parents, and she proposed a situation that she considered concerning. She said that as the amendment is written, a child could hear that their teacher would be required to notify their parent, take back their request to be called a different name or pronoun, but then receive “counseling†and “advice†from their teacher on the situation anyways.
Brown said this was concerning because then the parent wouldn’t know that their child was being counseled under a different name or pronoun.
Sen. Shelli Yoder, D-Bloomington, and Sen. Stacey Donato, R-Logansport, debate one of Yoder’s amendments. While Donato said she did appreciate working with Yoder, she asked her fellow legislators to oppose the amendment Photo by Xain Ballenger, TheStatehouseFile.com
Yoder responded firstly by saying no one should joke about HB 1608 and then that there are plenty of situations to be concerned about.
“Believe me, I have lots of concerns about 1608, and I am trying to find a common ground of where a student can … have any rights in them finding their way through,†Yoder said.
Sen. Rodney Pol, D-Chesterton, said that although there could be some issues with Yoder’s amendment, the bill is the real problem.
“What she’s [Yoder] doing is dealing with a bad underlying bill,†Pol said. “You don’t need this bill. There’s nothing that is stopping parents from being engaged with their students’ lives or their kids’ lives.
“We want healthy families, but we have to be cognizant of the idea that there are bad parents out there,†Pol added.
Yoder’s Amendment 11 failed by a vote of 34-14, with Republicans Sen. Ron Alting, R-Lafayette, Sen. Eric Bassler, R-Washington, Sen. Vaneta Becker, R-Evansville, Sen. Kyle Walker, R-Lawrence, and Sen. Greg Walker, R-Columbus, voting in favor of the amendment.
The bill now moves to its third reading in the Senate. If passed, it will return to the House.
FOOTNOTE: Ashlyn Myers is a reporter for TheStatehouseFile.com, a news website powered by Franklin College journalism students.
