Cougars win home opener in extra innings

EDWARDSVILLE – SIUE softball returned to Cougar Field for a successful home opener Wednesday, defeating Drake 5-4 in nine innings.

Freshman left fielder Alyssa Heren hit the top of the fence in right field to drive home Talisa Morton in the bottom of the ninth for her third game-winning RBI of the season.

Heren's bid for a walk-off home run was just an inch short.

"The red fence cap didn't help her with that," said SIUE Head Coach Sandy Montgomery, whose team improved to 6-11.

"It felt good coming off the bat," said Heren. "I was literally sprinting around the bases as fast as I could at first."

SIUE right-hander Ashley Koziol picked up her third win of the season with three perfect innings of relief.

"She came in with a lot of confidence and a lot of poise," said Montgomery. "She threw a lot of first-pitch strikes, and that was huge."

Drake, 9-10, took the lead in the first inning off SIUE starter Baylee Douglass. Kennedy Frank hit a solo home run, and Kailee Smith doubled home Megan Sowa.

The Cougars didn't get on the scoreboard until the fourth inning with a four-run rally.

Haley Adrian drew a bases-loaded walk off Drake starter-loser Nicole Newman to break the shutout. Amy Hunt then blasted a Newman pitch to the fence in left-center field, clearing the bases with her first career triple to give SIUE a 4-2 lead.

"Amy came up big today and put us in a good position," said Heren.

"She's (Hunt) been struggling a little bit, but we tweaked her stance," said Montgomery. "She's a competitor so I'm happy she got that hit for us."

Drake battled back for single tallies in the fifth and sixth inning on RBI doubles by Frank and Tasha Alexander to send the game into extra innings.

It was SIUE's third extra-inning game of the season and the first win in extra innings.

"We've lost a lot of one-run ball games," said Montgomery. "Obviously, the kids played hard today so I'm happy for them that they got the win."

SIUE will look to keep the momentum going with the Ohio Valley Conference opener at Cougar Field. The Cougars face Austin Peay for a 1 p.m. doubleheader Saturday and a 1 p.m. single game Sunday.