Game Notes

EVANSVILLE, Ind. – The University of Evansville softball team will wrap up its three-game series against Southern Illinois with a single game at James and Dorothy Cooper Stadium on Tuesday. First pitch is set for 5:00 p.m.
 
The two teams met in Carbondale on April 17 for the first half of the midweek Missouri Valley Conference series. The Salukis came out victorious in both games of the doubleheader, posting a come-from-behind 2-1 win over the Aces in game one before taking game two by a final score of 9-1 in six innings.
 
Since facing the Salukis last week, the Aces have gone 2-3, notching a non-conference sweep against Saint Louis before falling three times to Creighton in last weekend’s MVC matchup.
 
The Aces enter the matchup batting .239 as a team, led by freshman Kayla Fortner who is batting .370 from the right side with four home runs and 27 RBI. Sophomore Katie Sears has improved to .290 on the season after hitting .348 last week. Sears tallied two triples and four RBI over the seven-game stretch, only striking out once in 23 at-bats.
 
Catch The Action

	Live Stats	Watch	Listen	Twitter Updates
4/24: UE vs. SIU, 5:00pm	Click Here	AcesTV Live Streaming	91.5 FM WUEV	@UEAthletics

 
Scouting the Salukis:
Southern Illinois Salukis (30-13, 14-5 MVC)
The Salukis enter Tuesday’s game ranked second in the MVC standings, just three games out of the top spot. Southern Illinois is in search of its second sweep of the MVC season, as the Salukis have dropped at least one game to every Valley opponent they have faced with the exception of a three-game sweep of Wichita State. SIU is coming off a 3-1 record since meeting the Aces on April 17, taking a non-conference win against Eastern Illinois before posting a 2-1 record this weekend against Drake.
Hitting:
Five Salukis enter Tuesday’s game batting over .300, led by Mallory Duran who ranks second in the Valley with a .382 average. Alli VadeBoncouer leads Southern with seven home runs on the season, batting .355 with a team-best 46 RBI at the plate. VadeBoncouer went 4-for-5 against the Aces in the April 17 doubleheader, notching a home run, a double and four RBI against the Purple Aces.
Pitching:
The Salukis’ pitching staff has combined for an ERA of 3.58 this season, led by Alyssa Wunderlich who has posted a 2.89 ERA with a 10-2 record in 80.0 innings of work. The Aces faced Brittney Lang and Katie Bertelsen in the doubleheader last week, both of who held Evansville’s offense to one run each. Lang, who owns a 3.64 ERA allowed six hits and six strikeouts while Bertelsen scattered four strikeouts and four hits.