EVANSVILLE, Ind.—With scoring a minimum in the final game between the University of Evansville softball team and Drake, pitching and defense became key in the contest, as the Aces (17-31, 9-14) secured the series over the Bulldogs (30-18, 11-11) 2-0 on Sunday at James and Dorothy Cooper Stadium.

Freshman Kendall Kautz (12-13) went the entire seven innings with seven strikeouts in the game. Kautz also gave up four hits and two walk. Katuz is now three strikeouts away from 100 this season. Drake’s Jenna DeLong (15-10) also went the complete game with seven strikeouts as well to go along with four hits and five walks.

“I’m very excited for our team to get these wins,” said Evansville head coach Mark Redburn. “It was good to have a weekend at home and play well. We didn’t like last weekend, and we played better at UT Martin, so we wanted to carry that over to this weekend.

“I’m happy about the win and getting 2-of-3, but I’m also happy for the seniors that they got these last wins at home. Hopefully it will be a positive memory for them.”

Back-to-back doubles from junior Jen Stahlhut and sophomore Amy Gaertner helped bring in the game’s only runs in the third inning. Stahlhut’s 12th double of the year put senior Jamie Lindauer at third before Gaertner pushed both runs across home plate.

Lindauer walked at every at bat during the final game for three and is now tied for fifth in UE’s career walks rankings with 60 in her career. Kautz along with freshman Tamara Robey also recorded hits for the Aces.

Drake put runners in scoring positions a couple of times throughout the game. Bridget Shields posted a hit in the fourth before being stranded at second after a sacrifice bunt. Shields was again left on base in the sixth after she walked and advanced to third on an Erin Mollohan double. Molly McClelland was the only player with multiple hits, as she went 2-for-3 for the Bulldogs.

With the win, UE has secured the final spot of the State Farm Missouri Valley Conference Tournament and will head to Des Moines, Iowa, May 13-15 to face off with the other seven teams. However, The Aces will first have to go to Omaha, as they take on Creighton for the final conference series of the regular season next weekend.