EVANSVILLE, Ind. – University of Southern Indiana Softball returns home this week when the Screaming Eagles collide against the University of Tennessee at Martin in a three-game Ohio Valley Conference series from USI Softball Field on Thursday and Friday.
The series-opening game is Thursday at 3:30 p.m. The series concludes on Friday with a doubleheader starting at Noon.
Southern Indiana (10-21, 7-9 OVC) will play at USI Softball Field for the first time in April. Two weeks ago, their previous home series against Southern Illinois University Edwardsville had to be moved due to record rainfall in the Evansville area, causing wet field conditions. USI looks to get back on track in its return to the home field after going 1-4 in its last five games.
Last time out, the Screaming Eagles fell against OVC-leading Eastern Illinois University last weekend in all three games. Following a 5-2 score in the series opener, the Panthers won with a walk-off home run in extra innings in game two before a 9-1 result in six innings in the series finale.
Senior outfielder
Kennedy Nalley and senior infielder
Whitley Hunter were USI's leading hitters last weekend at Eastern Illinois, batting .429 each. Hunter also tallied a run and an RBI. Freshman
Jordan Mackey batted .300 and collected a pair of RBIs against the Panthers. In the pitching circle, freshman hurler
Kylie Witthaus tossed another quality start in the middle game of the series, pitching a complete 7.2 innings with a career-high seven strikeouts and three runs allowed.
Overall, four Screaming Eagles are batting over .300. Junior outfielder
Caroline Stapleton leads the way with a .351 batting average while also pacing the team with 17 runs. Hunter is also hitting over .300 and is second behind Stapleton with 12 runs. Hunter tops the squad with 15 walks and a .455 on-base percentage, which ranks top 10 in the OVC. Mackey and fellow freshman
Lilly Brown are also hitting above .300. Mackey is first on the team with four home runs and 18 RBIs. Sophomore outfielder
Kate Satkoski has increased her batting average to .281 in recent weeks and sits second behind Mackey with 13 RBIs. Satkoski led USI in its five games last week, hitting .455 (5-11) with three extra-base hits and six RBIs.
On the pitching side, Witthaus (4-7) has a team-best 3.09 ERA in 70.1 innings with 43 strikeouts. Witthaus has five consecutive quality starts, all of which have been against OVC opponents, and a sub-1.50 ERA in those five starts. In seven total starts in conference play, Witthaus has four wins and a 1.80 ERA while holding opposing batters to a .203 batting average. Senior pitcher
Josie Newman (6-13) has a 4.65 ERA on the season. Newman has thrown the most innings with 110.0 innings pitched, including 14 complete games. Newman has an OVC-high 152 strikeouts.
UT Martin (14-23, 6-11 OVC) enters the week on a four-game losing skid after getting swept last weekend against Tennessee Tech University. The series finale went to 11 innings last Sunday before the Golden Eagles scored five runs in the 11
th. The Skyhawks have an OVC series win against Morehead State earlier this season while salvaging one game in each of their other OVC series so far.
Graduate infielder Alli Robinson leads UT Martin with a .330 batting average and 30 RBIs. Robinson is tied for the team lead in home runs (6) alongside junior catcher Avary Makarewicz. Makarewicz is second behind Robinson with 15 RBIs. The Skyhawks' pitching staff has been led by junior pitcher Ashtyn Green, who owns a 7-7 record and a 3.11 ERA in 23 appearances, 16 starts, and 83.1 innings pitched.
UT Martin leads the all-time series against USI, 6-4. Last season, the Screaming Eagles took two of three on the road at UT Martin. USI also went 2-1 in UT Martin's last visit to the USI Softball Field in 2023. Southern Indiana has been able to bookend each of the last two series meetings with UT Martin claiming the middle games.
The three-game series can be seen with a subscription to ESPN+ and heard on The Spin 95.7 FM. Additional coverage can be found at usiscreamingeagles.com.
