OTAHKIANS RECEIVE MATCHING SET OF 'L's

Don't let her red hair, her freckles, her short frame or her shy demeanor fool you.

Middle Tennessee State's Jennifer Martinez is tough.

Tough enough to basically beat a team all by herself.

Martinez hit a three-run double and came about five inches from throwing a no-hitter in the opener of a doubleheader Saturday as Southeast dropped a pair of 4-0 losses at Southeast Missouri State's sports complex.

Middle Tennessee (29-14), which dropped out of the Ohio Valley Conference last year to join the Sunbelt Conference, has now gone 53 innings without allowing an earned run.

"Pitching has been our cup of tea all year," Middle Tennessee coach Karen Green said. "If we have good defense, it's going to be tough to score on us."

No need telling that to Southeast coach Lana Richmond, who on Friday picked up her 600th win in a 12-inning thriller.

"It was kind of disappointing that we had a lot of mental errors and some miscues," said Richmond, whose squad had won six games in a row and seven straight at home. "But give them credit. They hit the ball, played defense and, of course, they got great pitching."

Richmond went as far as to say that Martinez (11-9) and Game 2 hurler Stacy Preator (13-4) would be the best one-two punch in the OVC.

The duo combined to limit Southeast to only seven hits in the two games.

Designated hitter Emmy Kisaka's soft line-drive double down the third-base line prevented Martinez from throwing her first no-hitter. Instead, she settled for her third one-hitter this year. She struck out five and walked two.

"I felt really well," Martinez said. "I was excited to come here. The past two years, they came to us. I think they'll kick some butt in the OVC, though. I wish them the best of luck."

Martinez' three-run double in the third inning was all the Raiders needed. Actually, it would've been enough for both games. She ended up with three hits on the day, two coming in the second game.

Middle Tennessee tacked on another run in the top of the seventh. All four runs scored in the first game, however, were unearned.

In the second game, Southeast had more opportunities with six hits, including two by Southeast's Jenny Doehring. But the Otahkians couldn't get the big hit and ended up leaving five runners on base.

Middle Tennessee scored all four of its runs in the first inning with two outs. After the Raiders loaded the bases, one run came home on a sacrifice fly and then three consecutive batters got hits for Middle Tennessee.

Preator got the win for Middle Tennessee. She struck out eight and walked none.

It was a long day for Southeast pitcher Kristen King (5-10). She pitched both games and deserved a better fate, particularly in the first game when she gave up no earned runs on seven hits and no walks.

In the second game, she allowed four earned runs on eight hits and no walks while striking out two.