May 1, 2011

EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. - SIUE's 2011 home schedule is now complete after Sunday's 2-1 loss to UT Martin at Cougar Field.

The Cougars will be on the road for the remainder of the season as they aim for postseason position. SIUE, 26-27 overall and 17-10 in the Ohio Valley Conference, is in fourth place and has secured a spot in the six-team OVC Tournament.

That tournament will be held in Charleston as Eastern Illinois secured the top seed with a 3-1 victory Sunday against Jacksonville State.

SIUE has three games left in its regular season. The Cougars travel to Clarksville, Tenn., to face the Governors of Austin Peay next weekend. The three-game series begins Saturday with a 1 p.m. doubleheader and ends Sunday with a single game at 1 p.m.

The second through the fifth seed for the OVC Tournament are up for grabs with Jacksonville State at 20-7, UT Martin at 17-9, SIUE at 17-10, and Southeast Missouri State at 16-10. As many as four teams are vying for the No. 6 seed.

On Sunday, it was Senior Day for the Cougars as Head Coach Sandy Montgomery lauded her four seniors - Laurie Siebert, Ali Downing, Erika Taylor, and Kasey Schlafke - in a pregame ceremony.

"They are great people and great team players," said Montgomery. "They have really excelled as players and people. More importantly, they have great character and I'm very proud of who they are and who they have become."

The Cougars didn't have the type of post-game celebration they had hoped as the Skyhawks, now 30-21 overall, used a pair of solo home runs for the victory. Stephanie Nidiffer homered with one out in the second inning. Leah Taylor hit a home run to lead off in the sixth.

Montgomery said that's what sometimes happens when you go with a power pitcher in the circle. Taylor, 19-15, finished the day with four strikeouts to become the second pitcher in school history to pass the 700 mark.

SIUE had tied the score in bottom of the fifth as Megan Murphy led off with a single off UTM hurler Amanda Bradenburg. The Cougars would load the bases after walks to Chelsea Yankolovich and Rachel Coonrod. Taylor Tooley picked up the RBI on a sacrifice fly to center field.

The Cougars, which outhit the Skyhawks 6-4, had numerous opportunities with hard-hit line drives all over the field. SIUE would strand nine runners in the game. That included at least one in every inning except the sixth.

-siue cougars-