Murray State wasted little time asserting its dominance Wednesday afternoon, using a five-run fifth inning to pull away from Evansville and claim a 9-1 victory in the opening round of the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament.

Bre Haislip was masterful in the circle for the Racers, going the full five innings and allowing just three hits and one earned run while striking out three. The win improves her record to 12-8 on the season.

Murray State broke the ice in the bottom of the second when Katy Huels singled up the middle to plate Allie Waldron, who had walked and advanced on a Bailey Broemmer sacrifice bunt. Huels added a stolen base for good measure. The Racers then erupted for three more runs in the third, highlighted by a two-RBI single from Broemmer that scored Kenley Minor and Adison Hicks after a wild pitch had already given Murray State a 2-1 edge in the frame.




Evansville's lone bright spot came in the top of the fourth, when Niki Bode launched a solo home run to left field — her first of the day — to cut the deficit to 4-1 and briefly breathe some life into the Purple Aces' dugout.

Any momentum was quickly extinguished. Murray State answered emphatically in the bottom of the fifth, plating five runs to salt the game away. Waldron led off the inning with a home run to left-center, her first of the game, and the Racers kept rolling from there. Huels and Ailey Schyck each added RBI singles, and Kynadee Warner capped the scoring with a groundout RBI that made it 9-1. Warner finished 2-for-4 with an RBI, while Huels went 2-for-3 with two RBIs and a stolen base.
Evansville starter Kate Ridgway took the loss, falling to 10-14 after allowing four earned runs on seven hits in 3.1 innings. Two relief pitchers — Alexis Tucker and Elle Jarrett — combined to allow five more runs in mop-up duty.

Emma McDonald provided a small silver lining for the Aces, doubling in the fifth, but Evansville managed just three hits on the afternoon and stranded only three baserunners — a sign of how few opportunities the offense generated against Haislip.

Up Next: Murray State (27-21, 17-9 MVC) advances to face No. 2 seed and tournament host Southern Illinois on Thursday. Evansville (21-29, 12-15 MVC) will look to extend its season this evening in an elimination game against UNI.