Softball drops SLIAC tournament game to Fontbonne

PEORIA, Ill. - The softball team faced top seeded Fontbonne in the first game of the weekend's SLIAC tournament and lost by a 9-3 final score. The Panthers played indoors at the Louisville Slugger complex in Peoria.

Greenville opened the game with a 1-0 lead after Madi Case hit a leadoff triple and scored on Jaclyn Belzer's sacrifice fly to the shortstop.

Fontbonne went up 2-1 with a pair of runs in the bottom of the first and added two more runs in the bottom of the second.

In the top of the fourth, Mia Boyd launched her league-leading seventh home run of the season to centerfield, a solo shot that made the score 4-2.

However in the bottom of the fourth, the Griffins added a run and tacked on two runs in the bottom of the fifth.

Taylor Weiss did her part to tighten the game with an RBI double in the top of sixth, but the damage was too high to overcome.

First team all-conference pitcher Alison Klaus received the start in the circle. She pitched four innings, allowing seven runs, six earned, on nine hits and six walks.

Klaus yielded the circle to second team all-conference pitcher Melissa Bernal who gave up two runs in two innings.

The Panthers (20-20) play Webster on Friday at Noon in an elimination game at the Louisville Slugger complex in Peoria.