Morehead State improved to 34-15 overall, while EIU halts its season at 20-26. The Eagles will now face Tennessee Tech in a game tonight at 6:30 p.m. EDT. MSU defeated Tech two out of three games in the regular season. The winner moves on to the loser's bracket finals on Saturday at 11 a.m. EDT.

Senior outfielder Kari Quinn got MSU on the board with a two-run single in the first inning with two outs. Bri Jones led off the game with a single and Courtney Seiler walked. After two ground outs, Quinn ripped a 2-1 Karyn Mackie pitch to right center to plate Bianca Cardenas and Brandy Bucher. The Eagles chased Mackie after only two-thirds of an inning and brought in Kathleen Jacoby. In an earlier meeting with EIU, MSU had chased Jacoby out of a game in the first inning.

The Panthers, however, rallied with a four-spot in the fourth inning. Ally Nolte belted a three-run homer to left field off Alex Gjevre, and Taylor Lawson followed with her first career homer, a solo shot, over the fence down the right field line. The Panthers knocked out Gjevre after three-and two-thirds innings. MSU brought in sophomore Sarah Funston, and she finished off the game and was the beneficiary of the Eagle rally to improve to 6-3. Funston also fanned three EIU hitters.

Down 4-2, the Eagles jumped back on top in the fifth. Cardenas started the rally sliced a double to right center field on a hit-and-run to score Seiler and Bucher. Seiler led off the inning with a single and Bucher followed with a single up the middle. With Cardenas on second, Ellis drilled her second home run of the season - a line drive shot to left center- to put the Eagles ahead 6-4.

"I was just looking for something in my zone. Usually it's outside, but they're gonna threw me all inside this whole tournament so that's what I'm looking for and it just happened to be the right pitch at the right time," said Ellis.

Bucher knocked an RBI single to plate MSU's seventh run in the sixth. Jones led off with a single and later scored on Bucher's "Texas-league" single up the middle.

For the Eagles, Jones and Bucher had two hits apiece, while Seiler scored twice. EIU's Megan Nelson led all players with three hits.

Samford, who had earlier rallied to beat third-seed Eastern Kentucky, jumped on MSU starter Alex Gjevre in the first and second innings to take a 3-0 lead. Gjevre got the first two outs before allowing a single to Aaren Fischer. With one strike on pitcher Amanda Barrs, Gjevre nearly got out of the first unharmed. But, Barrs took a 2-1 pitch high over the right field fence for a 2-0 Bulldog lead.

Samford capitalized on a wild pitch to plate its third run in the second inning.

In the top of the fourth, Gjevre walked leadoff hitter Emily Deaux. With heavy rain beginning to fall, the umpires called for the field crew and the tarp. That was at 4:08 central time. To everyone's dismay, the rain came down for the next three hours, and play didn't resume until 7:53 p.m.

Photo by Mackenzie Bates


Gjevre only allowed two hits in the final four innings but her counterpart, Barrs, tossed a gem and helped herself with the first-inning home run. She only gave up two singles to Brandy Bucher and Allie Honkofsky. After the delay, the Eagles got the single from Bucher in the fourth. A wild pitch allowed Bucher to move to third base. But, Barrs got Rebecca Butler to ground out to first base and then struck out the next two Eagles to end the threat. Honkofsky's single came in the fifth frame.

"I think we hit her (Barrs) decent enough to win the first couple in the first series we played them and this time around, her drop ball was good and we got caught on her change up a little bit," saud MSU head coach Holly Bruder. "She threw a great game. I can't take anything away from her. I expected more out of my girls. She pitched a two hitter against us and you're not going to win with two hits." 

Barrs improved to 8-7, while Gjevre fell to 17-6.

The Eagles will now have to win five more games in the tournament if they want to be crowned champion. Samford, meanwhile, had to win three last weekend just to make the tournament and now finds itself in the semifinals against the winner of the Jacksonville State/Tennessee Tech game which began around 9:30 local time here Thursday night. MSU must win its game against EIU Friday morning or be ousted from the tournament. 

Gjevre is the first major award winner from MSU in the history of the program and since the conference began holding a championship in 1994. Meanwhile, the trio of all-conference awards represents MSU's initial first-or-second team honors since Toni Orr was second-team in 2003.

Gjevre, who is 17-5 entering the OVC tournament, led the conference and currently ranks sixth in the nation in Division I for ERA at 0.77. That mark, if it holds up this week, would set an OVC single season record. The only other five pitchers ahead of her right now are all on teams in the top 30 in the Warren Nolan national softball RPI ratings. She has already set the Morehead State single season record for victories (17) and strikeouts (121) and is within striking distance of single season MSU marks for winning percentage, solo shutouts and saves.

Gjevre Receiving Her Award

She has only allowed two total runs and just one earned run in her last 30.0 innings in the circle and posted an even-lower 0.64 ERA against Ohio Valley Conference teams in 2008 while going 11-3. Gjevre has now collected 31 wins in less than two full seasons to rank third all-time at MSU. She also ranks third in career strikeouts now with 215. She was named OVC Pitcher of the Week three times

Quinn is completing her career on a high note this season and earned a spot on the all-OVC second-team as a utility player. She is 11-6 pitching this year with a 1.68 ERA and has thrown two solo no-hitter and been a part of a third no-hit shutout. She totaled 76 strikeouts in the regular season and holds the MSU career record with 352. She plays in the outfield when she's not in the circle, and she's been equally solid at the plate, hitting .308 overall and against OVC teams. She led the team with seven home runs, including five during the Feb. 22-24 weekend at the Blues City Classic. She entered that weekend without a career home run. She produced 24 RBI and had 13 multi-hit games.

Butler was named to the second-team as an infielder and also landed a spot on the 12-member All-Newcomer Team. She had a solid freshman campaign, including leading the team with a .338 batting average and 14 doubles to rank in the top 75 nationally. She had 14 multi-hit games and nine multi-RBI games. Butler has driven in 32 runs so far in 2008 and hit six home runs.

Randy Stacy and Mackenzie Bates will be calling all the action of MSU's first OVC Tournament appearance since 2000 on MSPR.

The entire 2008 Ohio Valley Conference Softball Tournament will be available on-demand on OVCSports.TV. Catch all the action for just $9.95.

Morehead State earned the second seed in the tournament and received a bye into the second round. The Eagles' first game is scheduled for 4 p.m. EDT on Thursday (May 8) against the winner of the Samford/Eastern Kentucky game to be played earlier that day in the first round.