PEORIA, Ill. – SIUE softball eliminated UT Martin from the Ohio Valley Conference Championships Wednesday with a 6-1 win.
The Cougars will now move on to face fourth-seeded Southern Indiana at the beginning of the double-elimination portion of the tournament bracket. Game time is approximately 6 pm
The eighth-seeded Cougars, now 19-33, jumped out early against UT Martin, 30-22, with only one home run by Emma Henderson in the second inning. An 0-1 pitch went opposite field and was a line drive over the right field fence.
SIUE added to the lead in the fourth. Grace Lueke led off with a walk, and Anna Henderson made it runners on second and third with a double to left center. Emma Henderson would ground out to drive home Lueke. Anna Henderson would score on a UT Martin infield error.
The lead increased to 5-0 in the fifth on a Lueke sacrifice fly that scored Kaylynn Salyars and an RBI single by Anna Henderson.
UT Martin scored its only run in the sixth. With the Skyhawks threatening further Jenna Herron made the play of the tournament so far with a catch in left field. Herron made a play on a ball from Kiersten Nixon in which she caught the ball and ran into the fence within a split second.
SIUE used back-to-back-to-back singles from Herron, Lueke and Anna Henderson to add an insurance run in the seventh.
Sydney Baalman went the distance for the victory and is now 7-16 for the season. She yielded just two UT Martin hits and struck out seven.
