EAST PEORIA, Ill. – The UIndy softball had an eventfully first day at the 2018 GLVC Championship Tournament Thursday. The third-seeded Greyhounds (37-17) dropped a 4-0 decision to No. 6-seed Southern Indiana in the opener, but battled back to defeat seventh-seeded William Jewell in wet conditions in game two, 6-3.
 
GAME 1 | USI 4, UIndy 0
The Greyhounds faced a tough match-up versus USI starter Jennifer Leonhardt (15-11). The All-GLVC Second Team pitcher tossed a gem, allowing no runs and just one hit all game. Freshman Brooke Montgomery led off the bottom of the first with a single, but Leonhardt went on to retire 21 of the next 24 batters on the way to the win.
 
The only other UIndy hitters to reach base safely were Cathy Skaggs and Sydnie Foster, who both walked, and Gianni Iannantone, who reached on an error.
 
Sophomore Lauren Honkomp (16-8) got the start for the Hounds. She gave up single runs in the first and the fourth innings before allowing a pair of USI insurance tallies in the seventh to finish one out shy of a complete game. She struck out one but also walked only one.
 
GAME 2 | UIndy 6, WJC 3
The Hounds began the elimination game versus Jewell still searching for some offense. But after going down 3-1 through four and a half innings, the bats came alive in the fifth, generating five big runs on four hits and an error.

The rally started rolling when junior Shannon Schuetz delivered a bases-loaded single to tie it up. The go-ahead score came across two batters later when pinch-hitter Brooke Riess battled back from an 0-2 count before ripping a single to left and scoring Haylie Foster with what proved to be the game winner. Iannantone, the ninth batter of the frame, added to the cushion with a two-run double before the Cardinals finally ended the inning.
 
In addition to scoring a key run, H. Foster got the win in the circle. She came in on relief of starter Halie Waters in the fourth and and finished the game with 3 1/3 scoreless innings to facilitate the comeback and get the win.
 
The victory provided an added benefit for UIndy, as William Jewell entered the day ranked seventh in the latest Midwest Region rankings.
 
UP NEXT
The Hounds will face another elimination game tomorrow morning when they take on the loser of this evening's Missouri-St. Louis/Illinois Springfield match-up. First pitch is scheduled for 11 a.m. local time, 12 p.m. Eastern.