DES MOINES, Iowa – The Drake softball team began another Missouri Valley Conference series on Friday night as it hosted the Southern Illinois Salukis in a doubleheader from Buel Field. It was not the Bulldogs night, however, as they fell in both contests dropping game one, 11-0, and falling in game two, 3-1.
 
Southern Illinois 11, Drake 0
Game one of the day saw the Salukis take control from the jump and shutout the Bulldogs behind an impressive pitching performance from Brooklyn Danielson. Danielson held the Bulldogs offense to just four hits in the game, three singles and a double by Ava Curry, and tallied nine strikeouts to just one walk.
 
SIU grabbed the lead in the first with one run scored off the first of three Drake defensive errors in the game, but the damage was limited to just that single run with the Bulldogs getting out of a bases loaded jam.
 
In the second, Southern Illinois plated two more runs with a two-RBI single by Maleah Blomenkamp to make it a 3-0 ballgame.
 
After a scoreless third, SIU put up its first crooked number inning of the game as it scored four runs in the fourth inning. Blomenkamp continued her strong day at the plate leading off with a solo home run and then a couple batters later Amanda Knutson launched a two-run homer. Jordan Stewart drove in the last run of the inning with a base knock down the left field line.
 
With the scoreboard reading 7-0 the Bulldogs were on the verge of getting run-ruled, but relief pitcher Cassidy Gall held SIU scoreless in the fifth and sixth innings. That changed in seventh, however, when the Salukis put up another four-spot.
 
SIU took advantage of a Drake error, a wild pitch, and two hits to push its lead out to 11-0 and take the win in the first contest.
 
Southern Illinois 3, Drake 1
Game two was much more of a pitcher's duel between the Bulldogs and Salukis. Drake's Ashlynn Sheets and SIU's Hailey Lucas both performed well, but a couple of mistakes from Sheets allowed Southern Illinois to sweep the day.
 
SIU did all its damage over the middle innings scoring one run each in the second, third, and fourth. Blomenkamp kept producing with an RBI single to give the Salukis the lead and Emily Williams and Mikaela Coburn each recorded a pair of solo homers.
 
Meanwhile, the Bulldogs couldn't quite figure out Lucas who was perfect through three innings. Drake finally recorded its first hit of the game in the fourth off a double by Kiley Kindelspire.
 
Drake started to gain momentum off Lucas in the later innings with some more base knocks but unfortunately couldn't bring in any runs.
 
Down to their last hope in the bottom of the seventh, the Bulldogs did start the makings of a rally with Ava Husak and Haley Schroeder both hitting doubles, which cut the deficit down to 3-1. But SIU made the move to the bullpen and brought in Emily Delgado who put an end to the Bulldog comeback attempt producing a groundout and strikeout to end the game.
 
Drake and SIU will close out the series tomorrow with a single game. First pitch from Buel Field is scheduled for 2:00 p.m.