SPRINGFIELD, Mo.—Freshman pitcher
Hadley Clark (Owensboro, Kentucky) and junior designated player
Sara Loete (Pekin, Illinois) helped lead the University of Southern Indiana softball team to a GLVC doubleheader sweep over Drury University Saturday afternoon.
The Screaming Eagles (13-30, 5-12 GLVC) won the first game, 2-1, before taking the second game, 6-3.
In game one, Clark (4-6) scattered three hits throughout seven innings while giving up just one unearned run to pick up her second straight decision.
USI took advantage of some early control issues by Drury hurler Laura McCarthy to plate its first run of the contest. McCarthy hit a batter to lead off the top of the second inning; then, after an error, a single, and a strikeout, walked in the first run of the contest.
Junior leftfielder
Lindsay Raikes (Speedway, Indiana) picked up the RBI as she drew the one-out walk. Raikes doubled to lead the fifth inning off and came around to score two batters later when senior rightfielder
Lacey Ligmanowski (Homer Glen, Illinois) flew out to centerfield.
Drury (12-34, 1-15 GLVC) took advantage of an error in the sixth inning to score its only tally and had the tying run at second base in the seventh inning before Clark closed the door on the rally.
After spotting the Panthers a run in the bottom of the first inning of game two, the Eagles quickly responded in the second inning as Loete doubled in the first run before coming around to score the second run on sophomore pitcher
Dawn McClellan's (Valparaiso, Indiana) RBI groundout.
The Eagles took advantage of a pair of errors to plate three runs in the next inning. Senior shortstop
Ally McKinley (Sullivan, Indiana) had an RBI-single; while Loete, who was 3-of-4 with four RBIs in the second game, hit a two-run single three batters later to give USI a commanding 5-1 advantage.
Drury used a one-out triple in the third inning and a lead-off triple in the fifth frame to cut USI's advantage to 5-3, but Loete recorded another RBI-single in the sixth inning to give the Eagles a three-run cushion.
McClellan (5-12) also earned her second straight win after giving up three runs off eight hits in 7.0 innings of action.
The Eagles, who have won four straight games, conclude their final GLVC road trip of the season when they visit Rockhurst University Sunday. First pitch is slated for noon in Kansas City, Missouri.
