EVANSVILLE, Ind. – University of Southern Indiana Softball began its final regular-season series on Saturday with a 3-2 series-opening victory against Lindenwood University at USI Softball Field.
 
Saturday's win helped Southern Indiana (15-23, 12-11 OVC) inch closer to Lindenwood (23-22, 14-11 OVC) in the Ohio Valley Conference standings, as seeding for the coming week's OVC tournament is still to be determined. The Lions are in fourth place with USI right behind in fifth.
 
After a leadoff strikeout to begin Saturday's game, Lindenwood scored the first run of the day on a solo home run to lead 1-0 through one inning.
 
Southern Indiana answered the Lions' early tally with a crooked number in the bottom of the third inning. The first two Eagles reached to begin the inning before senior outfielder Kennedy Nalley drove in the tying run with an RBI single. Two batters later, freshman infielder Jordan Mackey doubled to the left-center alley to score a pair of runs and give USI a 3-1 advantage.
 
Meanwhile, senior pitcher Josie Newman was in a groove, settling in after the first couple of innings. The right-hander struck out seven Lions through the first four innings of play.
 
The Lions made it a one-run ballgame with an unearned run in the top of the fifth, but that is all they would get as Newman and the Screaming Eagles locked down the series-opening win from there.
 
Newman (9-15) tossed a complete, allowing two runs – one unearned – and only three hits, while striking out 10. Newman had three innings with two outs coming via the strikeout.
 
Offensively, USI totaled five hits with sophomore infielder Sydney Long recording two hits. Nalley had one RBI, and Mackey collected two RBIs.
 
For Lindenwood, junior pitcher Ryleigh Owens (11-8) was dealt the loss after surrendering three runs in four innings of work with three strikeouts. Fellow junior hurler Avery Wapp finished the last two innings with five strikeouts and no hits or runs allowed.
 
With two scheduled games remaining, USI would need to complete a series sweep of Lindenwood to jump the Lions for the fourth spot by conference win percentage. The fourth seed would avoid the single-elimination round of the OVC tournament. USI could also end up as a fifth seed or sixth seed, depending on how results play out across the conference the rest of the weekend.
 
The Screaming Eagles and Lions conclude the series Sunday with a doubleheader starting at Noon from USI Softball Field. Sunday is also Senior Day for USI Softball, recognizing its three seniors of the 2025 class. Sunday's games can be seen with a subscription to ESPN+ and heard on The Spin 95.7 FM. Additional coverage can be found at usiscreamingeagles.com.