Southeast Missouri State softball team opens OVC tournament with wins

~ The Redhawks softball squad advanced to the winners bracket final with wins against SIUE and No. 1 seed Eastern Illinois

The Southeast Missouri State softball team is off to a dazzling start in the Ohio Valley Conference tournament.

Fifth-seeded Southeast rallied for a 4-3, eight-inning win over fourth-seeded SIU-Edwardsville in the opening round of the six-team, double-elimination event in Charleston, Ill.

That was just the appetizer for the Redhawks, who stunned top-seeded and tournament host Eastern Illinois 4-0 in the semifinals a few hours later.

Southeast will play second-seeded Jacksonville State at 3 p.m. today in the winners bracket final. A victory puts the Redhawks in Saturday's 12:30 p.m. championship round while a loss sends them to the 10 a.m. losers bracket final.

"It was a great day for us," said Southeast coach Lana Richmond, whose squad is chasing its sixth OVC tournament title but first since 1999. The winner earns the league's automatic NCAA tournament berth.

Clutch, timely hitting and the continued pitching brilliance of freshman Alora Marble keyed Thursday's wins.

Marble, a second-team all-OVC performer, fired two more complete games, giving her 11 this season. She improved her record to 17-7.

Marble dominated OVC regular-season champion EIU (39-11) as Southeast (29-28) improved to 2-2 against the Panthers this year. She pitched a three-hitter, with one strikeout and two walks.

"She was the story of the day," Richmond said. "She's really matured as a freshman. She's pitching with a lot of confidence and she's throwing so many strikes so her pitch count is really low."

Southeast had seven hits, led by senior Nicole Troncoso and junior Evan Sallis with two apiece. Sallis scored two runs.

The Redhawks took advantage of shaky EIU defense. Only one of their runs was earned off Amber May (22-5), the OVC pitcher of the year.

Southeast grabbed a quick lead with two runs in the top of the first inning. Sallis led off with a walk and scored on a double by Troncoso, who went to third on a passed ball and came home on another passed ball.

"We jumped on them right away," Richmond said. "We really put the pressure on them right there in the first inning."

Sallis and Troncoso teamed up again in the second inning to make it 3-0. Sallis tripled with two outs and scored when Troncoso reached on an error.

The Redhawks added their final run in the seventh inning. Junior Cheyenne Gipson led off with a single and stole second. Sallis bunted for a single and a throwing error allowed Gipson to score.

Southeast, trailing 3-2 against SIUE, was down to its final out in the top of the seventh when it scored the tying run.

Sophomore Kaitlin Wallace singled with one out and junior Shelby Stein followed with a pinch-hit single.

Sallis delivered a two-out infield single that brought in Wallace. It was the third hit of the game for Sallis, who eluded an attempted tag by the first baseman.

"[Sallis] is a gamer," Richmond said about the speedy transfer from Oklahoma. "She put a ball down the line and the first baseman could not tag her out. We kept the runner moving and she was able to score."

SIUE (28-29) went down in order in the bottom of the seventh to force extra innings.

Senior Carmen Fowler began the top of the eighth with a single. Freshman Shelby Kuryllo singled with one out and sophomore Taylor Cowan singled to load the bases.

Wallace walked to force home Fowler with the tie-breaking run, which held up as the game-winner after the Cougars were retired in order in the bottom of the eighth.

The Redhawks trailed 3-0 until the sixth inning, when they got two runs on just one hit.

Sallis led off with a single and Troncoso was hit by a pitch. Fowler reached on a fielder's choice that retired Troncoso. A throwing error on the play allowed Sallis to score and sent Fowler to second.

A ground out advanced Fowler to third and she came home on a wild pitch.

Marble allowed seven hits, three coming during a third inning that featured Taylor Tooley's three-run homer that put SIUE up 3-0.

Marble allowed just one hit over the final four innings. She finished with four strikeouts and one walk.

The Redhawks had 11 hits. Sallis went 3 for 4, making her 5 for 7 on the day. Kuryllo and Wallace both added two hits.

"We got timely hitting and our speed created a lot of problems," Richmond said.