The SIU softball team was able to right the ship in their return to Charlotte West Stadium over the past weekend’s Coach B Classic, taking a 4-1 record out of the weekend from Feb. 28-March 2.
The team started the weekend off strong, beating Central Arkansas and winning their first home opener 2-0. Maleah Blomenkamp hit a single into left and was brought home when catcher Anna Carder hit a home run to left field.
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Shortstop Jackie Lis made the highlight defensive play of the game in the second inning when she turned a double play in the second inning, catching a fly ball and getting the out at second base.
Pitcher McKenzie Newcomb was able to get out of a jam in the 7th inning; with the bases being loaded, two outs, a full count of 3 balls and 2 strikes, she got the final out of the game and helped the Salukis start the tournament off on the right foot.
Their Saturday matchup with Central Arkansas didn’t go quite as well; the Salukis lost 10-7, despite having 2 home runs, one apiece by Jackie Lis and Alexis Rudd. Other scores were made by Emily Williams, Mikaela Coburn and Maleah Blomenkamp.
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The Dawgs got back on track in their second game on Saturday and won against the Purdue Boilermakers with a final score of 5-4. Despite the Boilermakers jumping out to a 3-0 lead in the top of the first inning, Newcomb was able to settle in and ended up recording 6 strikeouts. The Dawgs’ bats were able to answer in the third inning as Blomenkamp scored a run for the Salukis making the score 3-1.
By the bottom of the 7th inning, both teams were knotted at 4-4, leading the game into extra innings. Newcomb continued a dominant performance and blanked the Boilermakers in extras, and pitcher-turned-pinch runner Kiana McDowell was able to score the winning run after a throwing error and help the Salukis start their first winning streak of the season.
SIU took on the Boilermakers for a second time on Sunday and once again pulled out a win 6-5. Purdue jumped out to an early lead, scoring 2 runs in the top of the first off of Emma Gipson, while the Salukis only got a hit by Anna Carder in the bottom of the first inning. Erin Lee was able to break the ice for the Dawgs in the second inning, leaving SIU down 2-1.
Both teams were once again neck-and-neck, going into extras with the score tied 3-3. The Salukis pulled through with Lee scoring again, and Emma Austin collected two RBIs, bringing in Charley Pursley and Amanda Knutson to win the game 6-5.
The Salukis once again took a win in their final game, this time playing Purdue Fort Worth. SIU came in strong in the first inning as Blomencamp, Carder, Addi Baker and Lee together scored 5 runs. The Mastodons came back in the second inning and 2 runs off of 4 hits.
The Salukis were unfazed and continued to score. By the bottom of the 4th inning, SIU was leading 8-2, but tacked on 8 more runs behind a barrage of hits and more than a full cycle through the batting order to find themselves leading 16-2.
The Mastodons had one more chance in the top of the fifth to attempt to catch the Salukis, but freshman pitcher Kaytee Dahlstrom was able to get out of the inning having only given up two runs and leaving the final score at 16-4.
SIU (5-13) closed out the weekend owners of a four-game winning streak. They will host the Saluki Invitational on March 8-9, playing a pair of games each against the University of Wisconsin and Northern Illinois University.
Sports photographer Emily Brinkman can be reached at erb_photo_ and ebrinkman@dailyegyptian.com. To stay up to date on all your southern Illinois news, make sure to follow The Daily Egyptian on Facebook.
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