Racers Cruise to Pair of Wins on Opening Weekend of Conference Play

Saturday, March 23

Charleston, Ill.

1 p.m.

Murray State

11-15, 0

Eastern Illinois

9-20, 0

Murray St.

Eastern Illinois

Photo by: Dave Winder-Murray State Athletics

Racers Cruise to Pair of Wins on Opening Weekend of Conference Play

3/24/2019 10:41:00 AM | Softball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2

Murray State softball opened Ohio Valley Conference play in style on Saturday, earning a pair of victories on the road against Eastern Illinois. Securing wins of 7-0 and 7-4, Murray State jumped out to a perfect start in OVC competition on a beautiful afternoon in Charleston, Illinois.

Game 1: Murray State 7, Eastern Illinois 0:
Murray State would be the first team on the scoreboard in game one, putting up the first runs of the afternoon in the top of the third inning. Lillie Goetz drove in Jensen Striegel to plate the first run, sending a two-out pitch to right center as the RBI double made it 1-0 in favor of the Racers. With Goetz now in scoring position after the extra-base hit, Murray State would tack on another score when Lexi Jones singled to center field, scoring Goetz from second as the Racers took a 2-0 advantage through the top of the third inning.

With Hannah James working in the circle for the Racers, she would continue to bamboozle opposing hitters as she worked 1-2-3 innings in the third and fourth frames to preserve the lead for Murray State.

Getting back to work offensively in the sixth, Murray State established their supremacy after Brenna Finck drove in Logan Braundmeier on an RBI single to right field, sparking a five-run inning for the Racers.

The second run of the inning would come as a product of alert base running by Lindsey Carroll, as she scored from third on a wild pitch from Sydney Cammon.

Sierra Gilmore would make the next contribution to the Racer scoring effort, driving in Abby Shoulders with two outs to keep the inning alive while putting up another run for Murray State.

Eliminating the force up the middle, Gilmore would go on to steal second after reaching base, putting runners on second and third for the Racers.

Lillie Goetz would follow with another two-out RBI single through the right side, driving in Brenna Finck to further extend the inning as the Racers continued to fire on all cylinders. With four runs already in on the inning, the Racers manufactured one more thanks to brilliant execution on the base paths. With runners on the corners, Goetz would take off from first and force the throw down to second. After being caught between first and second, Gilmore would head for home from third base to force a throw to the plate. Gilmore would be in safely at home, scoring the fifth run of the top half of the frame, and all runners would advance after EIU was left scrambling as they attempted to deal with both runners.

After back-to-back scoreless half innings, the Racers would keep their 7-0 lead intact as they approached the bottom of the seventh. Hannah James, looking to finalize a complete game effort, would record a pair of strike outs in the final frame to secure the victory for the Racers. In her seventh complete game outing of the season, James surrendered just four hits while fanning seven Panther batters to earn her seventh win of 2019.

Leading the way offensively for Murray State, Lindsey Carroll collected three hits with a triple and a run scored as one of five Racers to record multi-hit performances. Brenna Finck, Lillie Goetz, Logan Braundmeier, and Abby Shoulders also turned in two hits apiece to begin conference competition for Murray State in the 7-0 victory.

Game 2: Murray State 7, Eastern Illinois 4:
Game two of the doubleheader began in contrasting fashion, with Eastern Illinois getting on the scoreboard in the opening inning on a Mia Davis two-run home run to left field.

After a slow start at the plate for the Racers in game two, the Panthers hit their second home run of the ballgame in the third inning - this time a solo shot from Haley Mitchell.

Trailing by three runs in the fourth, Madison Culver would give the Racers momentum after a two-run moon shot cut the Panther lead to a single run. Her fifth home run of the season, Culver's round-tripper scored Kristen Bialek, who entered the game for Lexi Jones as a pinch runner after Jones singled with two outs in the inning.

With the Racers trailing by a single score in the fifth, Lindsey Carroll would reach base to begin the following inning after she was hit by a pitch from McKenna Coffman. After advancing to second on a throwing error from the catcher, a one-out single from Brenna Finck would put runners at the corners with just one out in the inning. With a familiar situation on the bases, Racer runners engineered the tying run when Finck was put in motion from first, forcing an erratic throw down to second that reached center field, allowing Carroll to score from third.

With the contest even at 3-3, the Racers would not be content with a tie ballgame as Sierra Gilmore gave her side the lead with an RBI single to score Finck from second to round out the Murray State half of the fifth.

In the Panther half, EIU would begin with a lead-off double from Megan Burton to put the tying run at second with no outs in the inning. During the following at-bat, however, Madison Culver would make an outstanding defensive play as her throw behind Burton at second caught her snoozing to clear the bases and record the first out of the inning. Hannah Cravens would follow with another double, and an RBI single from Haley Mitchell would tie the game at 4-4 for EIU in the bottom of the fifth inning.

Looking to keep the game tied, Ellison Barrett would enter to pitch for Murray State with two outs in the fifth. After recording strike three to end the inning, Barrett's punch-out would leave the bases loaded, preserving a 4-4 score through the end of five complete innings.

After a scoreless sixth from both sides, Murray State would have a chance to take the lead in the final frame when Sierra Gilmore stepped to the plate with runners on second and third. With one out in the inning, Gilmore would deliver in a big way as she sent a 2-2 offering to right center to score Leah Kesel from third. Jensen Striegel would then make it a two-run Racer lead after she scored from third on a passed ball, sliding under the tag at home plate to make it a 6-4 game in favor of the Racers.

Gilmore would complete the scoring for the Racers when she scored from third after a return throw went off the glove of the Panther pitcher. After a three-run seventh, Murray State would hold a 7-4 lead as the game approached the bottom of the seventh.

Hannah James would enter the circle for the Racers in the final frame, looking to record the last three outs in game two of the OVC doubleheader in Charleston. After surrendering a lead-off single, James would retire three straight batters to close the door on the Panthers in the 7-4 Racer victory.

James would record her first save in a Racer uniform, while Ellison Barrett earned the win for Murray State in the circle.

At the dish, Madison Culver (2-4, 2 RBIs, HR, 2B) fueled a potent Racer offense while Sierra Gilmore chipped in two hits and a pair of RBIs of her own in the second game of the day.

The Racers will look to build on Saturday's success in their return to the field on Wednesday, as they face Memphis in a mid-week contest at Racer Field in Murray, Kentucky.