Lady Cougars knocked off top spot in conference

Branden Peterson
Sports Reporter

The SIUE softball team faced two Great Lakes Valley Conference powerhouses this weekend.

The Lady Cougars faced the Lady Rangers of the University of Wisconsin-Parkside in a doubleheader Friday.

The Lady Rangers jumped out to a 4-0 lead after two innings in the first game.

The Lady Cougars countered with a two-run hit from Mandy Uhrhan. They were tied 4-4 in the bottom of the ninth, but SIUE made the most of its final at bat.

Uhrhan hit a double off the fence into left center to lead off the inning, and Jill Ibeck did the rest. Ibeck bunted past Ranger starter Jessica Siegel, and Uhrhan rounded third and scored the winning run.

The Lady Cougars beat the Lady Rangers 5-4.

In game two, Uhrhan blasted her second home run of the day, but the Lady Rangers took the offensive with five unearned runs in the sixth inning.

SIUE scored two runs in the bottom of the seventh but couldn't close the lead the Wisconsin-Parkside had gained.

The Lady Rangers defeated the Lady Cougars 6-3 in the second game.

The Lady Cougars and the Lady Flyers of Lewis University battled for first place in the GLVC Saturday.

In the first game against Lewis University, pitching was the strong point.

The Lady Cougars managed only one hit off Lewis starting pitcher Emily Granath. SIUE's Dawn Farmer was also on top of her game, allowing only three hits throught six innings.

In the top of the seventh with no score, the Lady Flyers loaded the bases on a single, an intentional walk and a hit batter. Lewis won the game 2-0 on an SIUE error.

With two outs, Farmer threw over the head of the first baseman on a routine ground ball and the only two runs of the game came across the plate.

In game two the Lady Cougars came out swinging when they loaded the bases in the bottom of the fourth. Amy VanderVinne led off the inning with a single to left field.

She was followed by a bunt single by Erin Newman.

After a Kelly Clay sacrifice, Uhrhan was intentionally walked to load the bases with one out. Ibeck then attempted a bunt, but Jenny Esker was called out at home.

Valerie McCoy followed with an RBI single, but the Cougars, who left 10 runners on base in the game, were retired with the bases loaded.

SIUE was down 6-4 in the bottom of the seventh with two outs but was not able to close the gap. The Lady Flyers beat the Lady Cougars 6-4.

The Lady Cougars are tied for second in the GLVC with the University of Southern Indiana who holds a 13-5 conference record.

SIUE will travel to Battle Creek, Mich., this weekend for the GLVC/Great Lakes Intercolligiate Athletic Conference Challenge.