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MARTIN, Tenn. – Solid pitching and big hits were the story of the day for Eastern Illinois as the Panthers extended their current winning streak to six straight games with a doubleheader sweep over UT Martin in the Ohio Valley Conference softball opener for both teams.
 
EIU won the opener 5-1 before a 10-0 win over the Skyhawks in five innings in the second game.    The final game of the series takes place on Saturday at Noon.  EIU improved to 12-9 on the season, 2-0 in the OVC.  UTM fell to 6-10 overall, 0-2 in the OVC.
 
EIU 5, UTM 1
Kendall Grover had two of the three hits allowed by the UT Martin pitching staff but both hits proved to be big during Eastern Illinois 5-1 win in the OVC opener.
 
Grover put the Panthers on the board in the fourth inning with a two-run homer for EIU's first hit of the game.  
 
The Panthers tacked on three insurance runs for starter Olivia Price in the seventh.   Grover had a two-run double to left finishing the game 2-for-4 with four RBI.   Jaylen Prichard had the other RBI with a bases loaded walk in the seventh.
 
Price (4-2) went the distance in the circle for EIU scattering six hits and allowing just one run in the bottom of the seventh.  She had five strikeouts.
 
Kaci Fuller had two of the Skyhawks six hits going 2-for-4 and driving in the lone UTM run in the seventh.  Krysten Brown was 2-for-3. 
 
Kiersten Nixon (0-3) took the loss for UTM as one of three Skyhawks pitchers.   Amber Cieplinski was 1-for-2 with a walk for the other Panthers hit. 
 
EIU 10, UTM 0 (5 inn)
Lindy Milkowski and Briana Gonzalez hit first inning home runs to stake Eastern Illinois to a 5-0 lead and that proved to be all the offense starting pitcher Rachel Kaufman would need during the Panthers 10-0 run-rule victory.
 
Milkowski hit a three-run homer in the first for her ninth home run this season.  Gonzalez followed three batters later with a two-run home run as EIU hammered out eight hits in the game.
 
Kendall Grover had a sacrifice fly in the second to push the Panthers lead to 6-0.  
 
The Panthers then put the game away with four runs in the fifth.  Gonzalez started the scoring with a sacrifice fly to center scoring Marama Makea.  Macey McElravy added an RBI single and Aryn Henke closed the inning with an RBI triple.
 
Milkowski and Prichard each had two hits to lead EIU's offense.
 
Kaufman (3-2) went the distance scattering five Skyhawks hits with five strikeouts. 
 
Brooklynn Linneman (2-3) suffered the loss as UTM's defense committed five errors leading to eight unearned runs in the contest.
 
Anna Hazelwood was 2-for-2 to lead the UT Martin offense.