Ridgway’s gem not enough as Aces drop opener to Bears

Doubleheader set for Saturday 

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – Freshman Kate Ridgway allowed just two runs on five hits in six innings of work on Friday, but two late runs saw Missouri State defeat the University of Evansville softball team by a final score of 2-0 in the series opener.

A pitcher’s duel ensued as Ridgway and McKenzie Vaughan held the opposing offenses in check through the first 5 ½ innings.  The Bears plated two runs in the bottom of the sixth before completing the shutout.

Niki Bode recorded a hit for the Purple Aces in the top of the first while Brooke Voss reached on a hit in the second.  Missouri State registered its first hit of the day in the bottom of the fourth.  In the top of the fifth, UE looked to break the scoreless tie as Miriah Powell reached on a 1-out walk before Kynadee Warner singled with two outs.  A foul out ended the threat.

Morgan Adams led the top of the sixth off with a double, but a fly out and two groundouts kept things scoreless.  The Bears capitalized in the bottom of the frame as two RBI singles gave them the lead.

Vaughan allowed just four UE hits while Ridgway held the Bears to five hits.

The squads will decide the series with a doubleheader on Saturday beginning at 2 p.m.

-www.GoPurpleAces.com-

Trailblazers get walk-off win to split MWAC doubleheader with No. 14 Parkland

VINCENNES, Ind. – The Vincennes University baseball team returned to Jerry Blemker Field Friday afternoon for the opening two games of their weekend Mid-West Athletic Conference (MWAC) series against No. 14-ranked Parkland College.

The Trailblazers opened the weekend slate with a big 11-3 victory over the Cobras, before dropping game two of the day 10-5.

Vincennes opened the weekend strong in game one, opening the game with a big five run first inning.

Freshman Jevan Andrews (Hobart, Ind.) got the inning going with a single before moving up with a pair of stolen bases.

Freshman Carter Gricius (Scottsburg, Ind.) followed Andrews by reaching on a hit by pitch and moving up 90 feet on a double steal with Andrews to give the Blazers runners at second and third.

Sophomore Corbin Napier (Indianapolis, Ind.) drove in the first runs of the game, reaching on a fielding error by the Cobras to put the Blazers ahead 2-0.

Sophomore Yancey Edlin (Pekin, Ind.) kept the inning going with a single before the bases were cleared again with a big two-RBI triple by sophomore Noble Johnson (Terre Haute, Ind.) to extend the VU lead to 4-0.

Johnson would then come in to score on an RBI double by sophomore Brody Fessel (DePauw, Ind.) to give VU an early 5-0 lead.

Vincennes would add to this lead in the third inning after a single by Corbin Napier and back-to-back walks by Yancey Edlin and Noble Johnson loaded the bases.

Fessel drove in his second RBI of the game with a bases loaded walk to give VU a 6-0 advantage over Parkland College.

Parkland would get on the board with a run in the fourth but VU answered back with another big inning in the fifth, plating four runs in the inning.

VU opened the fifth exactly like the third inning, with a leadoff single by Corbin Napier, followed by walks for Edlin and Johnson to load the bases.

Brody Fessel picked up his third RBI of the day with another bases loaded walk, which was followed by another bases loaded walk by sophomore Bryce Gross (Bridgeport, Ill.).

The inning continued after a pair of fielder’s choices with a two-RBI single by sophomore Nate Montgomery (Lexington, Ind.) to put the Vincennes lead at 10-1.

Parkland picked up a pair of runs in the sixth but were unable to cut further into the Trailblazers lead.

VU came to bat in the seventh needing one run to end the game early and got the inning started with a leadoff single by sophomore Bradyn Douglas (Frankton, Ind.).

Douglas would then steal second and take third on a passed ball.

Douglas would later end the game by scoring on a wild pitch to give the Trailblazers the game one victory over Parkland College 11-3 in seven innings.

Sophomore Carson Allen (Louisville, Ky.) took the mound in game one for the Trailblazers, throwing a seven inning complete game, allowing three runs, two earned on five hits and striking out five.

Vincennes looked to carry this momentum into the second game of the day but it was Parkland who struck first, scoring three runs in the first to open the game.

Vincennes would respond in the bottom half of the inning after a walk by Jevan Andrews and an RBI double by Carter Gricius.

Gricus would then score on an RBI single by Corbin Napier, who evened the game by scoring on an RBI double by Yancey Edlin to tie the game at 3-3 after the first inning.

Parkland would regain the lead later with a run in the third and extend their lead with two runs in the fourth and four runs in the fifth to take a 10-3 lead over VU.

The Trailblazers would not go away easy however, looking to complete a big comeback in the seventh.

VU got a single by Bradyn Douglas, a fielder’s choice by Jevan Andrews and a single by Carter Gricius, before Corbin Napier cleared the bases with a two-RBI double to put the Blazers within five.

This would be as close as the Blazers would get however as Parkland College closed out game two of the day 10-5 over VU.

Sophomore JD Bowser (Mt. Carmel, Ill.) got the start for Vincennes in game two of the day, throwing four innings, allowing six runs on nine hits and striking out five.

Sophomore Colton Okes (Evansville, Ind.) was the first out of the pen for VU Head Baseball Coach Chris Barney, throwing two innings, allowing four runs on three hits but closed out his outing strong by retiring the final four batters he faced in a row.

Freshman Ryan Rayburn (Columbus, Ind.) came on to pitch the seventh inning for the Trailblazers, throwing a clean inning by retiring the side in order and striking out the first two batters he faced.

The Trailblazers will look to bounce back and get the series victory as the series shifts to Parkland College in Champaign, Ill. for the final two games of this four game conference series Saturday, March 22 with first pitch scheduled for 1 p.m. eastern.

BOX SCORE

GAME ONE

Parkland – 000   102   0 – 3

VU (12-12, 3-6) – 501   040   1 – 11

VINCENNES HITTING

2B – Fessel. 3B – Johnson. RBI – Fessel 3, Johnson 2, Montgomery 2, Gross. HBP – Gricius, Napier. SB – Andrews 2, Douglas, Gricius, Montgomery.

GAME TWO

Parkland – 301   240   0 – 10

VU (12-13, 3-7) – 300   000   2 – 5

VINCENNES HITTING

2B – Gricius, Napier, Edlin. RBI – Napier 3, Gricius, Edlin. SB – Andrews.

-30-

The Vincennes University baseball team improves to 12-13 on the season with a 3-7 record in MWAC Conference play.

USI drops series opener at Morehead State

MOREHEAD, Ky. – University of Southern Indiana Softball dropped its series opener at Morehead State University Friday afternoon, 9-0 in five innings, to begin a road series in Ohio Valley Conference play.

Following two and a half scoreless innings on Friday, Morehead State (2-25, 1-6 OVC) quickly took hold of momentum and exploded for a big frame in the bottom of the third inning. The home Eagles tallied nine runs on nine hits in the inning, including a three-run home run.

Trailing 9-0, Southern Indiana (5-16, 2-4 OVC) sought to respond in the top of the fourth. Freshman catcher Jordan Mackey led off with a double, and after a walk, senior third baseman Whitley Hunter singled to load the bases. However, a double play and a strikeout ended the USI threat, and Morehead State went on to close out the game in five innings.

Junior outfielder Caroline Stapleton had two of USI’s four hits in the game. Senior pitcher Josie Newman (3-10) tossed four innings and struck out five in the start.

Morehead State totaled 12 hits with every player in the batting order recording at least one hit. Junior pitcher Rylie Burney (1-12) picked up her first win of the season in the five-inning shutout.

Southern Indiana and Morehead State conclude the series Saturday with a doubleheader beginning at 11 a.m. CT. The twin bill can be seen with a subscription to ESPN+ and heard on The Spin 95.7 FM. Additional coverage can be found at usiscreamingeagles.com.

MACOMB, Ill. – University of Southern Indiana Baseball allowed three big innings to Western Illinois University, falling 15-5 in the Ohio Valley Conference 2025 opener Friday afternoon in Macomb, Illinois. USI is 8-13 overall and 0-1 in the OVC after today’s game, while WIU goes 6-12, 1-0 OVC this year.

The Screaming Eagles found themselves in a hole after the first frame as the Leathernecks scored five times in the first to lead 5-0. USI would cut the deficit to three with a pair of runs in the third inning to make the score 5-2.

USI junior first baseman Kannon Coakley drove in the first run with an RBI double to right center to score senior centerfielder Khi Holiday, who had walked and advanced to second on a ground out. Coakley would cross the plate with USI’s second run when sophomore rightfielder Cameron Boyd doubled off the right center wall for the RBI.

The Leathernecks responded by scoring 10 unanswered runs, four in the fifth, two in the sixth, and four in the seventh to lead 15-2. USI answered with three runs in the top of the ninth on an RBI single by junior catcher Micajah Wall and a two-run double by Holiday before WIU closed out the 15-5 final.

On the mound for USI, junior right-hander Andres Gonzalez started and took the loss. Gonzalez (0-3) allowed seven runs on five hits and four walks, while striking out five in 4.1 innings of work.

Up Next for the Eagles:
The Eagles and the Leathernecks continue the series Saturday and conclude Sunday. Both games are scheduled for 1 p.m.

USI returns home to the USI Baseball Field March 28-30 when the Eagles host the University of Arkansas at Little Rock for a three-game OVC series.

Thomas earns Region 24 Player of the Year, Cooper and Akanmu receive All-Region honors

VINCENNES, Ind. – Vincennes University sophomore and 2024 NJCAA All-American Lebron Thomas (Bishopville, S.C.) headlined a trio of Vincennes University men’s basketball players to receive 2025 NJCAA Division I All-Region 24 honors.

Thomas earned NJCAA Division I Region 24 Player of the Year honors this season after leading the Trailblazers by averaging 14.2 points, 5.9 assists and four rebounds per game.

“I am truly honored and blessed to be the Player of the Year,” Thomas said. “It means a lot to me just being able to come out here and do what I love doing and working for. To be able to see this achievement I’m truly grateful for.”

“My favorite memory from this past season is probably when we beat Kaskaskia on Sophomore Night to go 16-0 in the Region,” Thomas added. “It just felt like the guys felt better about themselves and it is a great accomplishment in our lives.”

Thomas has scored in double figures 17 times this season and has four double doubles already this season.

Thomas’s best game this season came in a 39 point outburst in VU’s win over Triton College earlier this season, a game where Thomas also grabbed 10 rebounds and dished out six assists.

Thomas has a total of 939 points, 315 assists, 263 rebounds and 81 steals for the Trailblazers, scoring in double figures in 44 of his 62 games for VU.

“I say it was very important and hard at the same time,” Thomas said when asked abut the importance of being a team leader as the only returning Trailblazer from the 2023-24 season. “Because the guys come in worrying and thinking too much about everything, so it’s hard to get them to calm down about everything. I try to show them more than I can tell them about how things go around here. But I’m truly grateful for being with this group of guys and working with them because they truly care about their careers. Also seeing them change during this process is important to me.”

VU sophomore Michael Cooper (Minneapolis, Minn.) was the second Trailblazer listed on the 10-man All-Region 24 team.

Cooper is averaging 13.3 points and 6.6 rebounds per game this season for the Trailblazers, while averaging just under two assists per game.

“It means a lot because I felt I have been overlooked a lot in my career but I worked extremely hard this year and it shows it paid off,” Cooper said. “My favorite memory would be after winning our last regular season game and becoming 16-0 in the Region, which hasn’t been done that many times.”

Cooper has scored in double figures 18 times this season for Vincennes, with a team-leading five double-doubles.

Cooper has a big run of games earlier this season for the Trailblazers, where he had three double doubles in four games to help the Blazers to wins in all four games.

Cooper kicked off this hot streak with a 22-point, 10-rebound double-double against Lake Land College, before getting 24 points and eight rebounds against Olney Central.

The streak continued with 26 points and 10 rebounds against Wabash Valley and a 14-point, 10-rebound double-double against Kaskaskia College.

Cooper’s best scoring game this season came when he scored 28 points in a VU win over Kankakee Community College in November.

“I think you can’t beat playing at VU,” Cooper added. “The coaches are the best of the best and I have learned a lot on and off the court this year. The crowd always brings energy and love. Playing at home inside the P.E. Complex has been a amazing experience that I’m definitely going to miss.”

Sophomore Bryan Akanmu (Paris, France) rounded out the Vincennes trio to earn All-Region 24 honors this season.

Akanmu is currently averaging 9.1 points, 7.4 rebounds and 2.6 assists per game for the Trailblazers.

“It means a lot to earn this recognition,” Akanmu said. “I wouldn’t be able to get here without my team and those who have always believed in me.”

“My favorite memory from this season is definitely going undefeated in the Region in the regular season with my team,” Akanmu added. “This history of winning at VU is normal and expected. The fans are amazing here too.”

Akanmu has scored in double figures 14 times this season and matched Cooper’s team leading five double doubles this season.

Akanmu has been playing his best basketball this season lately, finishing the regular season with a streak of four-straight double doubles, including a season high 22 points and 11 rebounds in VU’s win at Lake Land College.

Akanmu’s best rebounding game this season came with 15 rebounds, 12 points and six assists in VU’s win over Olney Central College.

This trio of VU honorees has helped guide the Trailblazers to a record of 26-4 this season, including a perfect 16-0 regular season record in Region 24 play.

The Trailblazers will be in action Saturday, March 22 in the first round of the 2025 NJCAA Division I National Championship tournament in Hutchinson, Kan.

Vincennes earned the No. 14 overall seed in the National tournament and will begin tournament play Saturday against No. 19 seed Three Rivers College from Poplar Bluff, Mo. at 9 p.m. eastern.

ALL-REGION 24 TEAM

PLAYER OF THE YEAR – LEBRON THOMAS – VINCENNES

Sam Hincapie – Lake Land

Davius Loury – John A. Logan

Johnny Anderson – Shawnee

Gabe Omoregie – Lincoln Trail

MICHAEL COOPER – VINCENNES

Matthew Elsy – Southwestern Illinois

Muja Burton – Wabash Valley

BRYAN AKANMU – VINCENNES

Ty Williams – Lincoln Trail