Games #28-30
Lindenwood (12-14, 2-4 OVC)
vs. Southern Indiana (10-11, 4-2 OVC)
Match Information:
Dates: Saturday, Mar. 23 / Sunday, Mar. 24
Location: St. Charles, Mo.
Venue: Lou Brock Sports Complex
Start Times: 3:00 p.m. C.T. (Sat.) / 12:00 p.m. & 2:00 p.m. CT (Sun.)
All-Time Series: 1-7
Last Meeting: L, 4-7
Live Stats: Stats
Audio: Stream

On-Tap
Lindenwood continues their four-game home stand with a weekend series against Ohio Valley Conference opponent Southern Indiana starting on Saturday, March 23 at 3:00 p.m. CT at Lou Brock Sports Complex. The Lions enter the weekend with a 2-4 OVC record after going 0-3 at Tennessee State.

Saint Louis Recap
LU picked up a non-conference home win over their cross-town opponent Saint Louis by a final score of 1-0 on Wednesday. The Lions held Saint Louis to just three base runners all game.

Amanda Weyh (W, 8-6) picked up the win on the mound after throwing five innings allowing just two hits. This marked her eighth win of the season, tying her for second place in the Ohio Valley Conference. Weyh tossed four strikeouts in the process.

After the fifth inning, Avery Wapp (S, 1) came on four the lions shutting down the Billikens in the last two innings giving up no hits and not allowing a single base runner. It marked Wapp's first save of the season and was the fifth shutout for Lindenwood this season.

At the plate, the Lions finished the ball game with seven hits and held Saint Louis to just two with a batting average of .087. Mya Bethany and Ashley Gerber both had two hits for the Lions including a Bethany double down the left field line.

Bethany's double came in key during the fifth inning after poking it down the left field line to get into scoring position. After a wild pitch moved Bethany over to third, Izzy Wilcox was able to get the sacrifice bunt down to score Bethany and powered LU to a 1-0 shutout win.

OVC Preseason Poll
Southeast Missouri State was selected to win the 2024 Ohio Valley Conference softball crown as voted on by the league's head coaches and communications directors last week. Lindenwood was picked to finish in seventh.

Eastern Illinois earned six first-place votes as they were selected to finish in second followed by UT Martin and Southern Indiana. The Lions finished last season with a 16-32 overall record including a 8-15 conference record. Lindenwood made the OVC Tournament during their first Division I season, losing a heart-breaker to Tennessee State in 10 innings.

Statistical Leaders
Batting Average: Izzy Wilcox (.304)
Hits: Mya Bethany (21)
RBI: Madisen Noll (10)
ERA: Amanda Weyh (2.55)
Strikeouts: Amanda Weyh (83)

Scouting Southern Indiana
The Screaming Eagles are led by Sue Kunkle who enters her 23rd season at the helm for Southern Indiana. In her second season in the OVC, she has posted a 10-11 record so far including a 4-2 OVC record after a 3-0 sweep of Morehead State last weekend.

Caroline Stapleton leads the way at the plate for Southern Indiana with a .358 batting average in 20 games played. She has 19 hits this season which is second on the team and has a .460 on-base percentage. Lexi Fair leads the team in hits (20) and RBI with 12.

Josie Newman is the Screaming Eagles' ace on the mound with a 2.04 ERA to start the season. She has an 8-5 record heading into the weekend and has posted 97 strikeouts which is the most in the OVC.

Head Coach Erin Brown
Erin Brown is entering her third season as the head coach of the Lindenwood softball team in 2024. In 2023, the Lions went 16-32, including an 8-15 mark against OVC competition. Lindenwood finished with a winning record at home (12-10) and swept eventual conference champion Eastern Illinois late in the year at Lou Brock Sports Complex.

Under Brown's guidance, the Lindenwood softball team capped a historic 2022 season in the NCAA Midwest Regional and a 35-13 overall record. The Lions' trip to the regional tournament marked the first in program history, as the team claimed the No. 4 seed. Lindenwood earned a notable win over No. 2 UIndy in late April, the highest-ranked victory in program history.

Prior to Lindenwood, Brown was the head coach at Truman State University in Kirksville, Mo., where she accumulated a 348-302 record in 13 seasons at the helm of the program. Over her final seven seasons with the Bulldogs, Brown amassed 233 wins and a .643 winning percentage. Brown led TSU to five NCAA Regional Appearances, and coached three All-Americans, 12 first-team All-Conference selections, 10 second-team All-Conference honorees, and four conference major award winners in 13 campaigns. The Bulldogs made the GLVC Tournament in every season under Brown.

Up Next
Lindenwood hits the road next weekend before Easter weekend when they take on Tennessee Tech for a three game series in Cookeville, Tenn. starting on Friday, March 29.