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Game #23 Box:  PDF
Game #24 Box:  PDF
Two-Game Series Stats (PDF) | Photo Gallery (Sandy King)

CHARLESTON, Ill. -- Eastern Illinois softball earned their second consecutive split in as many days as the Panthers dropped a 8-3 first game to Missouri State, but gutted out a 5-4 nightcap win over the Bears on Thursday to improve to 12-12 on the season.

For the day, junior Ally Seplak and sophomore Carly Willert both notched 3-for-5 days at the plate for respective .600 batting marks, with Seplak tying newcomer Bailey O'Dell with two RBI performances.

Willert ripped two doubles in the second game victory while Seplak joined O'Dell, junior Abby Wood and senior Hayley Pieper with a double as well.  In fact, EIU had six total doubles to five for MSU.

Junior Melise Brown tallied her third triple of the season as well and led the Panther base runners with a base theft in both contests.

In the nightcap, the home squad took the early 2-0 lead in the bottom of the third as Seplak's two-out RBI double to right center that would plate O'Dell from first.  Brown followed with her own shot to right center, this time a triple, that naturally scored Seplak from second base.

The Bears (11-9) pulled to within one with their own run in the top of the fourth, but the Panther tacked on two more runs in their half of the frame as Willert and Ashleigh Westover set the table for Wood at third and first base, respectively.  Wood delivered as she nailed an RBI double through the left side to bring home Willert.  After MSU intentionally walked O'Dell to load the bases, Seplak's RBI shot to shortstop would end up bringing home pinch-runner Kayalie Pruett.

The visiting squad would not go away, however, as they added two more runs of their own in the top of the fifth, but the Panthers countered yet again with what would eventually turn into the game-winning run, as O'Dell plated Hayley Pieper, who had previously earned a walk-up double, thanks to an RBI base hit up the gut of the Bear defense.

Sophomore Stephanie Maday earned the complete game win in the circle to improve to 8-6.  She earned six strikeouts, five walks and allowed just two earned runs while limiting the Bears to just five hits.

Eastern more than doubled the Bears in hits in the nightcap victory thanks to a sizeable 12-to-five advantage.  EIU did commit three errors, however.

In the tough first game loss to MSU, the Bears enjoyed an early 3-0 lead in the first inning of the game, but Eastern pulled to within one with two scores in the bottom of the third.

An RBI double by O'Dell brought home Hannah Cole, before Reynae Hutchinson's single through the left side plated O'Dell.

After two scoreless innings, the visitors erupted for five runs in the top of the sixth to put the game out of reach for the Panthers, although Eastern did earn another score in the sixth to account for the final score.

Hutchinson was tagged for the loss following just two-thirds of an inning of work in the opening frame as she recorded a strikeout and a walk but allowed three runs off three hits.

Sophomore transfer Hanna Mennenga came in for relief in that opening inning and immediately ended the MSU run with the first of her four strikeouts on the day.

In fact she held the hard-hitting MSU squad at bay for several innings before the Bears finally erupted for those five scores in the sixth.

Team-wise, the Panthers actually led several stat categories in the twinbill, including leading the Bears in batting average (.364 to .276), hits (20 to 16), doubles (six to five), triples (one to none), and strikeouts (11 to 10).

EIU ended up stranding 16 total runners on the day, as compared to 14 for MSU while both squads turned a double play, with Westover earned EIU's double play thanks to an unassisted line-out at third.

Both contests lasted nearly two-and-a-half hours as the Panthers pulled to within 14-15 of the Bears in the all-time Division I series history between the two squads.

The Panthers will have the weekend off to prepare for their next homenon-conference twinbill, this time versus I-70 rival Butler on Tuesday (March 27).  First pitch of the doubleheader is set for 4 p.m. at Williams Field.

… for more info, contact Bart Rettberg, Asst. SID