Notebook: Red Devils Gear Up For Challenging Week

EUREKA, Ill. -- Following a weekend that included two non-conference victories and a pair of postponed doubleheaders, the Eureka College softball team will is scheduled to play six times during the upcoming week. Eureka will host North Central (Ill.) in a 3 p.m. doubleheader Tuesday before hitting the road for St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference doubleheaders Wednesday at Webster (5 p.m.) and Saturday at Principia (1 p.m.).

ABOUT EUREKA

The Red Devils are 6-4 overall after sweeping a doubleheader from USCAA Robert Morris-Springfield last Friday. It's the second consecutive season and the third time since 2006 EC has won at least six of its first 10 games.

Sophomore shortstop Kerrigan Dura continues to lead the Red Devils' offense, hitting at a .481/.576/.778 clip through her first 35 plate appearances. Senior catcher Lexi Litwiller is hitting .393 and senior third baseman Bridget Bankes has a .320 average.

Eureka is hitting .310 as a team and leads the SLIAC with a .441 on-base percentage.

In the circle, the Red Devils boast a league-best 3.11 earned run average. Junior Kali George has a 2.62 mark and freshman Erin Smith boasts a 3.25 ERA. EC limits opposing batters to a .259 batting average, the lowest mark in the league.

GEORGE, KANE SWEEP WEEKLY SLIAC HONORS

After a week in which Eureka swept its fifth straight non-conference doubleheader dating back to last season, junior right-hander Kali George has been named SLIAC Pitcher of the Week and sophomore first baseman Madaline Kane has been named SLIAC Hitter of the Week, the league announced Monday afternoon.

George threw her fourth career complete-game shutout in Friday's 11-0 win over Robert Morris-Springfield. She threw 5.0 scoreless innings, striking five, walking none and working around four RMU hits. She needed only 71 pitches to secure her second win of the campaign.

Monday's announcement marks George's second career SLIAC Pitcher of the Week award.

Kane had a big day at the plate in the Red Devils' sweep of the Eagles, going 3-for-4 with two runs scored, a double and five RBI. She was perfect in six defensive chances. Her two-run single in the first inning of Friday's opener set the tone for EC's sweep.

LAST WEEK IN REVIEW

Kali George fired a complete-game shutout to lead the Red Devils to an 11-0 win over USCAA Robert Morris-Springfield in game one of Friday's non-conference doubleheader in Eureka, Ill. Erin Smith (Dunlap, Ill./Dunlap H.S.) clubbed her first career home run in the nightcap and pitched EC to an 8-4 win, securing the twin bill sweep.

EC had nine hits as a team in game one. Courtney Kurtz drove in a game-high four.

In game two, Eureka did most of its damage during a six-run third inning. George and Kane drove in runs before Smith drilled a two-run home run to dead center field, her first career long ball.

Dura, George and Kane had two hits apiece in the nightcap. Kane finished with three RBI. Smith threw all 7.0 innings in her third win of the campaign. She struck out five.

WEEKEND CONTESTS RESCHEDULED

Weekend doubleheaders against Greenville and Spalding were postponed due to inclement weather.

Eureka is now scheduled to play Greenville on Monday, April 3 at 2 p.m. in Eureka. The Red Devils will host Spalding on Saturday, April 29 at 2:30 p.m.

NORTH CENTRAL (lll.) AT EUREKA (Tuesday doubleheader, 3 p.m.)

Eureka will host College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin member North Central (Ill.) Tuesday in a 3 p.m. doubleheader in Eureka. It is the first time the Red Devils and Cardinals will meet in softball.

The Cardinals are winners of three straight contests and will bring a 7-5 overall record to Eureka. NCC has played all 12 of its contests during a seven-day spring trip to south Florida and will playing in the Central Time Zone for the first time this season on Tuesday.

Taylor Clugston is hitting .429 in 12 starts to lead the North Central offense. Five regulars hit .342 or better and the Cardinals are hitting .309 as a team.

Three different NCC hurlers have logged at least 22.0 innings, all of which have an ERA of 3.00 or lower. Jennifer Yager leads the group with a 2.23 ERA and nine strikeouts in 22.0 innings of work. The NCC team ERA is 2.75.

Jim Kulawiak is in his 29th season as head coach at NCC. The Cardinals have won eight College CCIW championships, made 13 NCAA Tournament appearances and secured a fifth-place finish at the national tournament in 2001 under Kulawiak's guidance. He is a 1977 graduate of Western Illinois.

While Tuesday's contests will be Eureka's first against North Central, the Red Devils are not entirely unfamiliar with the CCIW. EC has played 24 contests against active members of the CCIW since 1995. Tuesday's doubleheader will be Eureka's first action against the CCIW since playing North Park in 2013.

EUREKA AT WEBSTER (Wednesday doubleheader, 5 p.m.)

The Red Devils are scheduled to play their first two true road contests of the season Wednesday at Webster. The St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference doubleheader, which will now serve as Eureka's league opener, is scheduled to begin at 5 p.m. at Blackburn Park in St. Louis, Mo.

Webster has a 12-7 overall record through its first 19 games. WU played eight of its first 19 games on a spring trip to Clermont, Fla. The Gorloks are a perfect 4-0 at home in 2017, sweeping doubleheaders from Robert Morris-Springfield and Wisconsin-Platteville earlier this month.

Five different players have started all 19 games for the Gorloks. Kayla Day is the top WU hitter with a .432 average in 14 appearances. Five players that made at least 3.1 plate appearances per game hit .310 or better. WU has a team batting average of .302.

The Webster pitching staff is anchored by the duo of Chelsea Thornley (2.68 ERA, 20 K) and Morgan Mansur (2.96 ERA, 27 K). The Gorloks have a team ERA of 3.51.

Chris Eaton is in his ninth season as head coach as Webster. The 1998 graduate of Missouri-St. Louis has piloted WU to two SLIAC regular-season titles and the 2009 SLIAC Tournament championship. He entered the 2017 campaign with a 153-146 record in St. Louis.

Eureka and Webster have played 25 times since 1995. The Gorloks have controlled the series, posting a 23-2 mark against the Red Devils, including an 8-0 record in St. Louis. Eureka snapped a 12-game skid in the series with last season's doubleheader split in Eureka.

EUREKA AT PRINCIPIA (Saturday doubleheader, 1 p.m.)

Eureka will continue its SLIAC road swing Saturday when the Red Devils travel to Elsah, Ill. for a 1 p.m. doubleheader against Principia.

Principia enters the week with an 0-2 record, having dropped both of its games on a spring trip to North Myrtle Beach, S.C. The Panthers will host Iowa Wesleyan on Friday before the Red Devils come to Elsah on Saturday.

The Panthers hit .259 (14-for-54) in their two contests against St. Joseph (Conn.) in South Carolina. Freshman Lauren Daugherty went 4-for-7 (.571) with two doubles.

Junior Aleigha Russell and sophomore Leah Schaefer split the pitching duties in the first two contests. Russell gave up 11 earned runs through 6.0 innings and Schaefer yielded six earned runs in 7.0 innings. PC's team ERA is 9.15.

The 2017 season is Ken Leavoy's eighth as head coach at PC. A 1975 graduate of Principia, Leavoy was the 2011 SLIAC Coach of the Year.

Eureka has won all 17 meetings with Principia since 1995 and owns a perfect 15-0 mark since Principia revived its program in 2010. The Red Devils have scored 10 runs or more in five of the last eight games against the Panthers since 2013, including both of last season's contests in Eureka.