PEORIA, Ill. – University of Southern Indiana Softball had its 2026 season end on Thursday night with a 7-4 loss against Southeast Missouri State University at the Ohio Valley Conference Softball Championship Tournament in Peoria, Illinois.
In what was a roller coaster of a ballgame, sixth-seeded USI (15-32, 11-16 OVC) fought back late despite facing adversity in multiple instances, including rain and wet conditions. Meanwhile, fifth-seeded Southeast Missouri (23-29, 16-10 OVC) kept its season alive and advanced to another elimination game on Friday morning against No. 4 seed Lindenwood University.
Thursday's contest saw Southeast Missouri take a 1-0 first-inning lead off a sac fly, as the Screaming Eagles limited the Redhawks to the single run after the bases were loaded earlier in the inning.
USI overcame the early run allowed by scoring two in the top of the third inning to take a 2-1 lead. With two runners on and two outs, junior infielder
Sydney Long directed a ball to the corner of the outfield to score both runners on a two-RBI triple.
After the Redhawks pitched around some USI baserunners in the top of the fourth inning, Southeast Missouri came back in the bottom of the fourth with six runs to surge ahead, 7-2.
The Screaming Eagles chipped away with two runs in the top of the sixth to make the score 7-4 after sophomore first baseman
Lilly Brown put the ball in play to score one run, and a cough-up by the Redhawks' defense allowed the second run to score.
However, the three-run margin was as close as USI could get before Southeast Missouri closed out the game.
USI totaled seven hits, with three players recording two-hit performances. Long had two hits with two RBIs, while freshman outfielder
Katelyn Marx and sophomore catcher
Jordan Mackey also had a pair of hits. Brown posted a hit, an RBI, and a run scored.
Sophomore pitcher
Kylie Witthaus (4-11) suffered the loss, allowing four runs and three earned in three innings pitched. Witthaus was followed by freshman pitcher
Anna Kemp, who went three innings and gave up three runs. Kemp also struck out two batters.
Southeast Missouri starting pitcher Elliott Stinson (7-7) picked up the win after going four innings with two runs surrendered and two strikeouts. Maddie Carney notched her third save of the season by tossing the final three innings with two strikeouts and two unearned runs allowed.
Despite Thursday's result, USI made its fourth consecutive appearance in the OVC Tournament, appearing all four years at the Division-I level, and made it a fourth-straight appearance that USI secured a postseason win in the conference tournament.
