BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – No. 13 Indiana rowing will face a field full of ranked opponents Saturday (March 23) at the Big Ten-Ivy League Dual, hosted by No. 5 Yale on the Cooper River in Camden, New Jersey.

Indiana will face No. 8 Penn, No. 12 Syracuse and No. 19 Harvard in its morning session. In the afternoon, the Hoosiers will face the hosts head-to-head. IU’s four varsity boats will see the water Saturday.

Indiana moved up in the ranking from No. 16 to No. 13 after a winning weekend at the Oak Ridge Invitational last week. The Hoosiers won 16 of 21 races over three sessions, collecting a 39-6 head-to-head record. IU’s Varsity Eight, Varsity Four, Third Varsity Four and Second Novice Eight were all undefeated in their three races.

Saturday’s full schedule can be found below. Results will be available via @IndianaRowing’s social media platforms.

SCHEDULE OF EVENTS
All times eastern
Saturday Morning
7:55 a.m. – V4 (vs. Syracuse, Penn, Harvard)

8:15 a.m. – 2V8 (vs. Syracuse, Penn, Harvard)

8:35 a.m. – V8 (vs. Syracuse, Penn, Harvard)

8:55 a.m. – 2V4 (vs. Syracuse, Penn, Harvard)

Saturday Afternoon
11 a.m. – 2V4 (vs. Yale)

11:30 a.m. – 2V8 (vs. Yale A, Yale B)

Noon – V8 (vs. Yale)

12:30 p.m. – 2V4 (vs. Yale)

MURRAY STATE TAKES VALLEY OPENER OVER EVANSVILLE, 13-6

MARCH 23 2024

EVANSVILLE, Ind. –  The visiting Murray State University baseball team used a five-run third inning to take control of the contest on Friday night, and the Racers held off a late charge by the University of Evansville Purple Aces for a 13-6 victory in the Missouri Valley Conference opener for both schools at German American Bank Field at Charles H. Braun Stadium in Evansville

“Tonight was a tough one,” said UE head coach Wes Carroll.  “We didn’t get the quality start that we needed on the mound tonight, and Murray State came to the yard and put it on us in all three facets of the game.

“Tomorrow is an important day for us.  We are going to face some quality arms once again, but we feel like we have some guys who can answer that.  We will need some guys to step up, and our offense will have to go get one for us these next two days.”

Murray State took an early 1-0 lead on an RBI ground out in the second inning, before UE answered right back in the home half of the inning to grab a brief lead.  Junior outfielder Ty Rumsey led off the second inning with a solo home run to right-center field for his third home run of the year.  Then, after a walk and a single put men on the corners, junior designated hitter Evan Waggoner drove in a run with an RBI ground out to give UE a 2-1 lead.

The Racers would break things open in the third inning, though, scoring five runs on five hits, highlighted by a two-run home run by designated hitter Dan Tauken, to take a 6-2 lead.  Murray State would tack on two more runs each in the fourth and seventh innings, and a solo run in the sixth to push the lead to 11-2.

Evansville would rally for two runs of its own in the seventh and eighth innings, as junior second baseman Cal McGinnis had an RBI single in the seventh and a sacrifice fly in the eighth, and graduate outfielder Mark Shallenberger drove in a run with a bases-loaded hit-by-pitch to trim the deficit to 11-6.  But, that would be as close as UE would come, as a pair of unearned runs by Murray State in the ninth inning provided the final margin of victory.

McGinnis and graduate catcher Brendan Hord had two-hit efforts for UE, while Rumsey added a solo home run.  Tauken and outfielder Riley Hawthorne both had two hits and drove in three runs for Murray State.

With the victory, Murray State improves to 15-6 overall and 1-0 in the Valley.  Evansville, meanwhile, falls to 9-12 overall and 0-1 in the MVC.  The series will continue on Saturday afternoon at 2 p.m., with UE sending freshman left-hander Kenton Deverman (2-1, 4.75 ERA) to the mound for the start.  Saturday’s game can be seen live on ESPN+

VINCENNES, Ind. – The Vincennes University Lady Trailblazers picked up a pair of big season honors with freshman Destinee Hooks (Indianapolis, Ind.) earning 2024 Region 24 Player of the Year honors, as well as being named Freshman of the Year in Region 24, while sophomore Elikya Baseyila (Paris, France) earned All-Region 24 honors for the second time.

Hooks burst onto the college basketball scene after missing nine of VU’s first 10 games by putting together a 21-point, six assist game to lead the Lady Blazers to a win over Parkland College.

Hooks earned her first of four double doubles this season with 24 points and 10 rebounds against Jefferson College.

Hooks would also earn NJCAA Player of the Week honors in February after posting 35 points and 13 rebounds against Wabash Valley and 37 points and 11 rebounds against John A. Logan.

Hooks closed out the season as VU’s leading scorer, averaging 21.1 points, currently sixth in the NJCAA, 6.5 rebounds and five assists per game, currently 17th in the NJCAA, while also averaging 2.9 steals per game, currently 32nd in the NJCAA, for the Lady Blazers.

“It truly means a lot to me to be named Region Player of the Year,” Hooks said. “Especially with missing my first 10 games with a broken hand. It shows the hard work and dedication that I put in to deserve this. It is truly a blessing from god to have this recognition. I just feel so blessed and honored and I am so happy to get to share this moment with my family, friends and team.”

“My favorite memory from this season is doing some of our team bonding activities,” Hooks added. “We would all go paint canvases and walk to the bridge and have some fun outside.”

“Some advice I have to give is to just put in the extra hours and work on your craft every day,” Hooks said. “Perfect the things you do really well and work on the moves that aren’t so down pat.”

VU sophomore Elikya Baseyila successfully defended her All-Region 24 status from last season by earning the honor again after averaging 11.7 points and 10.6 rebounds per game.

Baseyila ended the season with 12 double doubles and scored in double figures 20 times this past season, including scoring 10 or more points in VU’s last 11 games.

Baseyila closed out her VU career strong after finishing with 19 points and 18 rebounds in the Region 24 Championship game.

Baseyila is currently ranked 23rd in the country in rebounds per game and 15th in the NJCAA with an average of 4.9 offensive rebounds per game.

Baseyila closed out her two-year Lady Trailblazers career with a total of 664 points and 593 rebounds, which is third all-time in Lady Blazers history and 76 blocks, which is 10th all-time in VU women’s basketball history.

EVANSVILLE, Ind. – University of Southern Indiana Women’s Basketball extended its winning streak to a season-best 11 games in dramatic fashion Thursday night at Screaming Eagles Arena, capturing the program’s first-ever Division I victory in a national postseason tournament with a 69-64 win against the University of Illinois Chicago in the first round of the 2024 Women’s National Invitation Tournament (WNIT).
 
The Ohio Valley Conference champion Screaming Eagles (25-6) went back and forth against the Missouri Valley Conference’s UIC Flames (18-16) in front of over 1,700 fans in attendance. Each side led by as many as nine within the game, but the contest remained a battle inside the final minutes. With the historical first WNIT win for USI on Thursday, Southern Indiana advanced to the second round and was rewarded with the opportunity to host the University of Wisconsin (13-16) at Screaming Eagles Arena on Monday at 7 p.m. CT.
 
Thursday’s game started at a high tempo early. UIC knocked down two three-pointers within the first two and a half minutes despite shooting below 30 percent from long range this season. However, senior forward Madi Webb (Bedford, Indiana) provided the answer for Southern Indiana by scoring the Screaming Eagles’ first eight points. USI led by five, 13-8, near the midway point of the opening quarter. At the three-minute mark freshman guard Triniti Ralston (Louisville, Kentucky) converted a three-point play to put USI up 16-10. Southern Indiana carried an 18-14 lead to the second period.
 
Ralston began the second quarter for Southern Indiana with another three-point play. A few minutes later, Webb continued her hot start. The senior crossed into double figures and helped build USI’s lead up to nine, 27-18, with nearly seven minutes left in the first half. UIC ended the first half on a 12-4 run to cut Southern Indiana’s advantage down to one at halftime, 31-30.
 
Out of the break, the Flames went on another run to take the lead, which eventually reached a nine-point advantage, 42-33, before Ralston cashed in on another three-point play for Southern Indiana. The conversion put Ralston into double-digit scoring for the game. Ralston helped USI chip away, surpassing her career-high 14 points that she set in the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament championship game. With Screaming Eagles Arena buzzing after strong defensive stops, USI jumped back in front, 46-45, with three minutes left in the third quarter. A last-second layup by Webb gave USI a 50-46 lead heading to the fourth frame.
 
The intensity and physicality of the contest increased even more so in the fourth period. Senior forward Meredith Raley (Haubstadt, Indiana) made a tough layup at the 6:26 mark to maintain USI’s four-point lead, giving Raley 10 points in the game. At the halfway point of the fourth, Ralston continued to put her head down and get to the hoop, reaching the 20-point threshold for the first time in a USI uniform. Later in the quarter, UIC grabbed a 59-58 lead with just over two minutes left in the fourth. Ralston had the response once again for the Screaming Eagles. The guard scored a layup and a triple to generate the final momentum push needed to put USI in front for good, as Southern Indiana iced the game at the foul line.
 
Southern Indiana shot nearly 42 percent (23-55) in the game, hitting a pair of treys and also going 21-24 for 87.5 percent at the free-throw stripe. USI forced UIC into 23 turnovers, outscored the Flames 22-10 in transition, and was plus-eight in the paint. Ralston posted a game-high and career-high 25 points on 8-12 shooting with two threes and a 7-7 night at the charity stripe. The freshman also had four steals. Webb finished with 14 points, while Raley tallied 12 points.
 
UIC was held to just under 34 percent from the floor (20-59) with five three-pointers. The Flames were 19-25 for 76 percent at the foul line. UIC had 43 rebounds compared to USI’s 33. Junior forward Makiya Williams led three UIC players in double figures with 17 points.
 
Monday’s game against Wisconsin can be seen live with a subscription to ESPN+. 95.7 FM The Spin and 97.7 FM WREF will have radio coverage.
 
Detailed ticket information will be released soon. Inquiries can be directed to the USI Ticket Office at 812-465-1190. USI students receive free admission.