Box Score EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. – The SIUE softball team won its second nonconference game in as many days Thursday afternoon as the Cougars shut out Bradley 2-0 at Cougar Field.
For the second straight day, SIUE (17-18) earned a victory behind a strong starting pitching performance.
After Erin Greenwalt limited Saint Louis to one run over seven innings Wednesday, Haley Chambers threw a complete game shutout against the Braves.
Chambers picked up her 10th win of the season by allowing no runs on two hits while striking out seven BU batters.
"Haley pitched a great game for us," Head Coach Sandy Montgomery said. "She had great command all game long today."
The Cougars jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the first inning when freshman Whitney Lanphier reached on a fielder's choice to drive in Allison Smiley.
SIUE would add another run in the fifth inning when Rachel Coonrod was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded. The Cougars had several other chances to tack on to their lead, but Montgomery was still pleased with her team's effort.
"We were a little unfortunate in that we had a lot of hard-hit balls right at them," Montgomery said. "But we were able to get the win and that's what I'm worried about."
Bradley (17-21) had a chance to get something going in the seventh inning, but a stellar defensive play preserved the shutout for Chambers.
The Braves' Alyson Clemente hit a double to the corner in right field and tried stretching the hit to a triple, but right fielder Brittany Toney hit Smiley on the relay and third baseman Alex McDavid applied the tag at third.
SIUE will return to Ohio Valley Conference play this weekend with a three-game series against Southeast Missouri at Cougar Field. The teams will play a doubleheader Saturday beginning at 1 p.m. before playing a single game Sunday at 1 p.m.
"We've played a tough schedule and it's taken us a little while to get to where we're feeling confident both offensively and defensively. These two wins give us confidence going into the weekend and that's very important."
