Event returns to campus once again in March

EVANSVILLE, Ind. – Men’s basketball legend Andy Elkins highlights the 2017 Lunch with the Aces event, which will take place on Friday, March 31, 2017 at the Meeks Gym inside the Carson Center on the University of Evansville campus.

Elkins, who graduated from UE in 1995, led the men’s basketball team to two NCAA Tournament appearances and one NIT berth in his four years with the program.  He ranks sixth in program history with 1,761 points in his career.

A record crowd of over 400 was on hand for the 2016 event and this year’s lunch also promises to be a memorable one.  The full lunch runs from 11 a.m. until 1 p.m. with the program beginning at 12:30 p.m.

Early registration for your spot at the lunch is just $30.  The cost will be $35 after 5 p.m. on March 27 and at the door.  A Spring Break Special features $15 tickets for those 15 and under.  Another new opportunity is available as you can now sponsor a UE student-athlete for just $10.

The meal will be provided by Marx BBQ while a video presentation will be shown at the program.  A half pot and silent auction will also be on hand.  A Purple Aces student-athlete will be seated at each table and the latest Student-Athletes of the Year will be recognized at the lunch.

“Bringing this event to campus last year took it to a whole new level,” UE Director of Athletics Mark Spencer said.  “We had a record attendance and are excited to continue to build upon its success.”

Corporate tables are available for $350 and come with several unique perks.  You receive a table at the front of the room, logo on the video screen, logo in the program, recognition by the emcee and two student-athletes seated at each table.  Each corporate table has 8 seats.

To register, click on the link above or print off the registration brochure.  All proceeds directly support UE Student-Athletes.  For more information, contact Shelbie Weaver at 812-488-1024 or at sw260@evansville.edu.

The University of Southern Indiana baseball team is set to host Oakland City University Wednesday at the USI Baseball Field before returning to the road in the Great Lakes Valley Conference when it visits the University of Illinois Springfield in Springfield, Illinois, this weekend. The first pitch Wednesday versus Oakland City is set for 6 p.m. while the four-game GLVC series Saturday and Sunday at Illinois Springfield is set for noon each day. Coverage of the Screaming Eagles in 2017 can be found on GoUSIEagles.com.

SCREAMING EAGLES BASEBALL NOTES:

USI goes 3-2 last week. The Screaming Eagles (9-11) were 3-2 last week, defeating the University of Missouri-St. Louis in a walk-off ninth inning and split four games in the GLVC-opening weekend at Bellarmine University. USI junior shortstop Angel Torres led the Eagles last week, hitting .462 (6-13) and tying for the team-lead with four RBIs. Junior utility player Nathan Kuester and sophomore catcher Logan Brown also tied for the team-high with four RBIs each. Senior right-handed pitcher Justin Watts led the USI hurlers with two of the victories out of the bullpen.

Mr. Clutch. Junior utility player Nathan Kuester was “Mr. Clutch” last week for the Eagles. Kuester drove in the game-winning run against UMSL with a walk-off single in the ninth inning before producing the eventual game-winning RBI versus Bellarmine in the final frame of game two during the first doubleheader.

Climbing back to .500. Since starting the year 3-8, the Eagles have worked their way back to within two games of the .500 mark. USI has won six of the last nine games.

Last 10 games. Junior outfielder Buddy Johnson leads the Eagles over the last 10 games, batting .455 (10-22) in nine contests. Junior outfielder Drake McNamara produced a team-high eight RBIs, while four additional Eagles are tied for second with six RBIs each.

Season hitting leaders. Junior utility player Nathan Kuester leads the Eagles in hitting with a .338 batting average and 15 RBIs. He also is second on the team with two home runs. Junior outfielder Drake McNamara leads USI with four home runs.

Season pitching leaders. Senior right-hander Mike Ringer has the Eagles’ best ERA with a 1.93 in six appearances and 9.1 innings of work. Senior right-handers Lucas Barnett, Colin Nowak, and Watts are tied for the team-high with two wins each.

Archuleta at USI. USI Head Coach Tracy Archuleta is USI’s all-time winningest coach with a record of 387-203 (.656) in nine-plus seasons and is 535-327 (.621) in 14-plus seasons all-time as a head coach. He has been named the ABCA Division II Coach of the Year twice (2010 and 2014) after leading the Screaming Eagles to a pair of national championships and the ABCA Division II Midwest Region Coach of the Year after leading USI to the regional crown in 2016. Archuleta also has earned a pair of GLVC Coach of the Year awards (2011 and 2014) at USI.

USI vs. Oakland City. USI leads the all-time series with Oakland City, 86-10, after posting a 13-2 victory last year. The Eagles also have won five of the last six match-ups.

USI vs. Illinois Springfield. The Eagles holds a 17-2 all-time series lead with Illinois Springfield after splitting the four-game series last year at the USI Baseball Field.

Senior Jalen Madison (Princeton, Indiana) picked up two wins for the University of Southern Indiana track & field team at the at the VU Bill Smith Challenge hosted by Vincennes University Saturday afternoon.

In the discus throw, Madison’s toss of 121 feet, seven inches was good enough for the victory and fourth-best in Screaming Eagle history. Also competing in the event, freshman Tyler Howell (Leopold, Indiana) placed fifth with a toss of 95’07”.

Madison’s second victory came in the hammer throw after a toss of 141’05”. The mark also represents the fourth-best throw in USI history. Madison’s career-best mark sits at 144’02”.

Total, the Eagles earned 16 top-10 finished to go along with Madison’s two victories at the event.

Taking eight of the top-10 spots, the Eagles dominated in the 1,500-meters. Sweeping second through ninth, USI was lead in the event by freshman Javan Winders (Mansfield, Tennessee) who finished second in four minutes, 01.04 seconds. Senior Cain Parker (Petersburg, Indiana) also earned a top-three finish by crossing the finish line in 4:04.62.

USI returns to action at the WashU Invite March 31-April 1 in St. Louis, Missouri. Also, a number of athletes will head to Stanford, California to compete March 31 at an event hosted by Stanford University.

Aces home on Wednesday to face Kent State

EVANSVILLE, Ind. – In a back-and-forth game on Sunday at Cooper Stadium, Bradley came away with an 8-7 victory over the University of Evansville softball team.

A wild game saw three lead changes and an hour-long fourth inning with nine combined runs scored.  Morgan Florey went the distance, allowing 8 runs, just three earned while striking out eight batters.  The Aces (12-14, 4-2 MVC) out hit Bradley (17-15, 3-3 MVC), 13-7.  Michal Luckett, Florey, Chandra Parr, Courtney Land and Ashlee Kawall each had two hits apiece.

Chandra Parr got the game rolling in the bottom of the first inning.  With Brittany Hay on third and two outs on the board, Parr hit the 29^th home run of her career to give UE a 2-0 lead.  She is just one away from tying the program mark.  In the next inning, Evansville loaded up the bases, but was unable to push any across the plate.

Bradley took advantage in the ensuing frame.  Kelly Kapp walked to lead off the inning and stole second.  That steal set the all-time MVC mark with 93.  She would later score one of two runs in the inning.  Four more runs scored for BU in the fourth as UE committed three errors and had a passed ball.

Trailing 6-2, Morgan Lambert started the bottom half of the fourth off with a home run.  With one out, Ashlee Kawall notched a hit to right-center before Tess Hupe drew a walk and Brittany Hay was hit by a pitch to load up the bases for Michal Luckett.  She came through with a 2-run single as the Aces got within one.  Morgan Florey knotted the game back up at 6-6 as she singled to center before Hayli Scott hit a long double to left as the Aces grabbed a 7-6 advantage.

The Braves came right back with the game-tying run in the fifth on a sacrifice fly by Megan Mahaffy.  They added the game-winner in the top of the seventh to take the 8-7 win.

Kent State comes to town for a doubleheader on Wednesday.  The games are set for 3 and 5 p.m. at Cooper Stadium.

3/25-26/2017 — Perry Park Spring Fling
Perry Park Country Club — Perry Park, Kentucky
Par 72, 5840 yards — 18 teams, 103 players

# Indicates individual player