UE defeats Oakland in the second game of the day

MURRAY, Ky. – In day two of the Racer Classic, the University of Evansville softball team split games against Kent State and Oakland.  The Purple Aces fell to Kent State by a 6-3 final in game one before earning a 9-6 triumph over Oakland on Saturday evening.

“I thought we pitched really well in both games today,” UE head coach Mat Mundell said.  “We were able to really execute offensively in the second game.  We have been waiting for our offense to turn the corner, hopefully that was it.”

Highlighting game one was a 3-run home run by Morgan Florey, which gave the Aces (7-15) the lead before KSU rallied back.  In game two, the offense erupted for nine runs with the difference being a 4-run sixth inning.

Evansville fell behind by a 2-0 score in game one to Kent State.  The Golden Flashes plated a pair of runs in the opening frame.  UE starter Emily Lockhart kept Kent State off balance and the offense was able to take advantage in the top half of the fifth.

Elyse Hickey hit a 1-out single before Brittany Hay was hit by a pitch.  With two outs, Morgan Florey came to the plate and delivered her second home run in as many weekends to put Evansville on top for the first time at 3-2.

The lead was short-lived, however, as KSU added two runs in both the 5^th and 6^th frames to finish the contest with a 6-3 victory.  Pacing their offense was Emily Dobbin, who went 3-4 with three RBI and two runs scored.  Evansville racked up eight hits with Florey picking up three and Hickey notching two.

Florey took the ball in game two versus Oakland and got the job done in the circle and at the plate.  She kept the Golden Grizzlies off the board over the first three innings while her offense took a 2-0 lead.  Allison Daggett led the bottom of the third off with a single before Eryn Gould was hit by a pitch.  With one out, Florey came to the plate and delivered an RBI double to center to score Daggett.  Gould would later score on an error.

After Oakland tied it up with a pair of runs in the fourth, the Aces struck back with two more in the bottom of the frame.  Lindsay Renneisen led off with a single and scored the go-ahead run on a double by Ashleigh Downing.  Downing came home on a 2-out single from Gould.

Another run scored in the fifth when Renneisen’s second hit of the day brought home Brittany Hay, who reached on a fielder’s choice earlier in the inning.  Evansville put the icing on the cake with four runs in the sixth.  Two came off the bat of Hay, who hit a 2-run single before McKenzie Johnson notched a 2-run double to give UE a 9-3 lead.  Oakland rallied in the seventh with three runs, but Florey was able to close out the 9-6 win.

UE notched nine runs on ten hits in the game with Gould, Johnson and Renneisen posting two apiece.  Daggett, Hay and Gould each recorded two runs.  Florey threw all seven innings in the start on the way to her fourth win of the season.

the Aces play Murray State at 4:30 p.m.

University of Southern Indiana Softball sophomore pitcher Jennifer Leonhardt (Louisville, Kentucky) struck out 10 batters as the No. 14 Screaming Eagles forged a doubleheader split with visiting Maryville University in their Great Lakes Valley Conference opener Saturday at the USI Softball Field.

After suffering a 5-3 setback in the first game, the Eagles earned a 3-0 triumph in the second contest to come away with the split. Sophomore shortstop Taylor Ricketts (Georgetown, Kentucky) went a combined 4-of-6 with an RBI to lead the Eagles at the plate.

USI (12-9, 1-1 GLVC) returns to action Saturday at noon when it hosts Bellarmine University in a GLVC doubleheader at the USI Softball Field.

Game 1: Maryville 5, at USI 3 (Box Score)
Maryville (12-6, 1-1 GLVC) scored three times on a three-run double by sophomore pitcher Alyssa Callans in the in the top of the first inning and had a solo home run by sophomore shortstop Jaclyn Pasakarnis in the third to take a 4-0 advantage.

Sophomore outfielder Allison Schubert (Nicholasville, Kentucky) put the Eagles on the board with a solo home run in the last half of the fourth frame, while Leonhardt drove in a pair of runs on a two-out error in the fifth to bring the Eagles to within a single tally.

The Saints, however, got an insurance run in the top of the seventh inning and set the Eagles down in order in the last halves of the sixth and seventh frames to preserve the win.

Junior pitcher Courtney Atkisson (Bringhurst, Indiana) was charged with the loss after giving up five runs, two earned, off eight hits in 6 1/3 innings of work. Atkisson (4-2) had a pair of strikeouts in the loss.

Game 2: at USI 3, Maryville 0 (Box Score)
A solo home run by junior outfielder/pitcher Caitlyn Bradley (Forest, Indiana) put the Eagles up 1-0 in the bottom of the fourth inning, while RBI-singles by Leonhardt and Ricketts in the fifth and sixth frames, respectively, gave USI a commanding three-run cushion.

Leonhardt (5-5) was masterful in the circle, surrendering just four hits while fanning 10 batters, just one off her season high, to pick up the victory. She allowed just five base runners in total and did not allow a runner past second base.

USI also was aided by the efforts of senior third baseman Mena Fulton (Bloomington, Indiana) and senior outfielder Olivia Clark-Kittleson (Carbondale, Illinois), both of whom went 2-for-3 at the plate. Clark-Kittleson’s lead-off single in the fifth frame led to a USI tally, while Fulton’s lead-off double in the sixth led to the Eagles’ third run of the contest.

The Indiana University men’s and women’s diving teams earned three more spots at the NCAA Zone C Diving Championships on Saturday afternoon in Columbus, Ohio.

Both Jessica Parratto and Andrew Capobianco ended their great weeks on a high note, earning a third individual berth to the NCAA Championships. Both divers will compete in all three diving events at the NCAA’s. Freshman Mya Kraeger earned her first NCAA berth with a great performance in the platform dive.

In total, the Hoosier men qualified three divers that earned a total of seven NCAA spots, while the women had two divers earn four berths. Along with Parratto, Capobianco and Kraeger, both Michael Hixon and James Connor will dive in the 1-meter and 3-meter dives at the NCAA Championships.

In the women’s platform, Parratto was terrific, placing third overall in the final with a total of 604.65. Kraeger had a great showing, earning her spot at the NCAA Championships in the event with a score of 484.05.

Capobianco capped his week with another stellar outing, placing third overall with a total of 769.00 to earn his place at the NCAA’s. Capobianco is the only freshman in the nation to earn a place in all three diving events at the NCAA Championships.

Next up for the Indiana University men’s and women’s swimming and diving teams will be the NCAA Championships. The women’s NCAA’s run from March 14-17 in Columbus, Ohio, while the men’s NCAA Championships will take place from March 21-24 in Minneapolis, Minn.