The UIS softball team bounced back from a 7-1 loss to No. 1 seed Drury with a thrilling 4-3 walk-off win over Maryville to remain in contention at the 2024 GLVC Championship Tournament on Thursday.
 

GAME ONE | #1 Drury 7, #5 UIS 1

• UIS opened Thursday's action with a 7-1 loss to top-seeded Drury. The Panthers took an early lead with a solo home run and added another run with an RBI single in the first. The Stars threatened in the second with Addyson McClure's single and Rebecca Neupauer's walk but couldn't capitalize.
• Drury stretched the lead to 5-0 in the fourth after three hits, including a two-run double. McClure entered the circle and got a quick groundout to halt the Panthers. In the fifth, three Drury singles brought in two more runs before Taylor Zawacki took over in relief and worked out of the inning.
• UIS got on the board in the sixth. After walks to Zawacki and Malia Bender, McClure reached on a fielder's choice, and Zawacki scored on a shortstop error. That would be the lone run for the Prairie Stars, as Drury retired the side in the seventh.
• Rosie Bartletti took the loss (19-9), pitching 3.2 innings with 3 strikeouts, while McClure and Zawacki each contributed in relief. Offensively, UIS was held to four hits — two from McClure — as Drury's pitching stifled any sustained momentum.

GAME TWO | #5 UIS 4, #3 Maryville 3 (8 Inn.)

• The Prairie Stars and the Saints met for a 4:00 p.m. elimination game. Maryville had previously fallen 4-2 to Indianapolis and then bounced back to knock out two-seed Lewis.
• UIS, the home team this time, retired the side to open the game despite rain rolling in with first pitch. 
• The weather cleared quickly and the game avoided delay. Nyla Cooper singled and Bailey Masching walked in the second, but UIS left them stranded. In the third, Maryville took a 2-0 lead on a two-out rally—an RBI single followed by a home run. The Saints added another run in the fourth with a leadoff double, wild pitch, and RBI double. Bartletti struck out two to limit the damage.
• The Prairie Stars had baserunners in several innings but couldn't break through, and Maryville made a mid-game pitching change that maintained their momentum. In the top of the seventh, the UIS defense held Maryville scoreless with a pair of fielder's choices and a caught fly ball.
• Then came the bottom of the seventh. Jaden Watts pinch hit for Masching and walked. A groundout moved her to second, and Olivia DeLuca singled to put two on. Ella Brinkley walked to load the bases. With two outs, Rosie Bartletti drilled a bases-clearing triple to tie the game 3-3 and swing the momentum back to UIS.
• UIS took the field on defense briefly before a rainstorm forced a brief delay. Once the showers cleared, Bartletti returned to the circle and struck out two in a scoreless top of the eighth.
• In the bottom half, Malia Bender reached on an error and moved to second on a wild pitch. Nyla Cooper stepped up and delivered a single to right field, scoring Bender for the walk-off win and keeping UIS alive in the tournament.
• Bartletti improved to 20-9 after going 8.0 innings with 6 strikeouts, 7 hits, and 3 earned runs. Cooper and Zawacki had two hits each, while Brinkley, DeLuca, and Bartletti each contributed one.

Up Next
UIS will face No. 7 seed Missouri S&T at 11:00 a.m. Friday on Field 2 at the EastSide Centre.

The Miners upset No. 2 Lewis in the opening round and bounced back from a loss to Indianapolis with a 7-5 win over McKendree. Missouri S&T hit two home runs in Thursday's action, and Jordyn Davis went 3-for-3 in the day's second game. Mia Miller pitched both of Thursday's games and went the distance in the win against McKendree.