Game Notes • Radio Broadcast (91.5 FM WUEV)
EVANSVILLE, Ind. – The University of Evansville softball team will travel to Terre Haute, Ind., this weekend to take on the Indiana State Sycamores in the fourth weekend of Missouri Valley Conference play. The two teams will go head-to-head in a doubleheader Saturday before concluding the series with a third game on Sunday. Both days are slated to start at 11:00 CDT.
The Aces (7-27) are looking to snap a five-game losing streak after most recently dropping a pair of tough midweek games to No. 16 Missouri.
Evansville currently sits at the bottom of the MVC standings with a conference record of 1-8 after having faced Creighton, Northern Iowa and first place Drake already in Valley play. Those three teams have so far compiled a combined record of 18-5 in conference contests. Evansville’s lone win came in the form of a 4-2 victory over Creighton in the opening day of conference play.
Indiana State enters the weekend ranked seventh in the MVC with a 2-6 conference record after being swept by Drake and Missouri State. The Sycamores notched their first pair of Valley wins last weekend against Wichita State.
Senior Jen Stahlhut leads the Evansville offense and ranks sixth in the MVC with a .347 batting average. Stahlhut hit her third home run of the season to lead off Wednesday’s first game against Mizzou, marking her second first inning leadoff homer of the season.
Sophomore Alicia Betancur sent her first home run of the season over the centerfield wall in game one against the Tigers. Betancur ended the day going 2-for-5 at the plate and is now hitting .253 on the season with 17 runs scored.
Junior Amy Gaertner tallied her ninth double of the season Wednesday, bringing her season batting average to .277. Gaertner leads UE in doubles and has tallied a team-high four home runs so far this season.
Scouting the Sycamores
Indiana State Sycamores (11-17, 2-6 Missouri Valley)
The Sycamores bring a three-game losing streak into this weekend’s series after most recently falling to Southeast Missouri State twice in a Wednesday’s doubleheader.
The Sycamores are hitting .259 as a team with 10 home runs. Alex Baumgart leads the Sycamore lineup, batting .351 at the plate with 26 hits and a .442 on base percentage. Baumgart is also ranked second in the Valley with 11 stolen bases on the year. Bailey Wittenauer is the Sycamores’ leading slugger, pacing the team in nearly every offensive category. Wittenauer is batting .314 with four home runs, 23 RBI and 44 total bases.
The Sycamores’ pitching staff consists of three arms that share fairly equal time on the mound. Kristen Felker has seen the most innings in the circle, posting a 2.71 ERA with 53 strikeouts in 64.2 innings of work. Sara Evans and Lindsey Beisser will most likely both make appearances this weekend. The three have compiled a team ERA of 3.39 with an opponent batting average of .265.
