In the last game the Eastern softball team played against Southeast Missouri, it dominated the Redhawks 10-2, smashing six home runs in the game.

Eastern will look for a repeat performance today against the Redhawks, in an Ohio Valley Conference game at Williams Field starting at 3 p.m.

It took only six innings before the rules forced the Redhawks to surrender as they were losing by eight runs in the sixth inning.

The Panthers clinched the win in the top of the sixth inning as they added four runs to a 6-2 game. With the win, Eastern clinched a clean sweep of SEMO in the March 31 OVC doubleheader.

While the Panthers had a power surge in the nightcap, they will not be focused on hitting more bombs against the SEMO pitchers, but they’ll look to put the ball on the dirt.

“As much as we like the home run, I’m looking for ground balls and I think our whole team pretty much is,” junior third baseman Kiley Holtz said.

Holtz was 2-for-7 with one RBI in the March 31 doubleheader but she was not one of the six Panthers to hit a home run in the nightcap.

Despite an urge to want to see some power again in the Panthers’ offense, Holtz said home runs are not in the game plan.

“We’re going to focus an extra bit to hit those ground balls,” Holtz said.

In the past week, head coach Kim Schuette has focused a lot on hitting ground balls with two strikes and attacking the pitchers early and often. Against the Redhawks, Schuette said her team will be focused to put the ball in play.

In order to be successful, she said being on the attack from the first inning will be important.

“Just like a horse race when the bells sounds they come flying out of those gates,” Schuette said. “We have to come out of the gates in the first inning tomorrow and take the home-field advantage.”

Schuette said that when batters go up to hit ground balls, good things can happen, including hitting a deep ball.

“When you try and hit ground balls and line drives, that’s when home runs happen,” Schuette said.

However, if the batter has the opposite mindset, bad things might happen.

“When you try to hit home runs, pop-ups and strikeouts happen,” Schuette said.

While Eastern (19-17, 9-4 OVC) took 2-of-3 against Eastern Kentucky this weekend, the Redhawks (13-21, 4-9 OVC) took 2-of-3 against Tennessee State.

Despite the Redhawks last place position in the OVC, Eastern will be focused going into the home game, as it will try to wrap up its third and final game against SEMO in the regular season by getting a win.

“We want to keep up the momentum and the way we’ve been hitting, which is great,” Holtz said.

The Redhawks have been a rival of Eastern’s ever since Schuette has been the Panthers’ head coach. So Holtz said the team will be ready to win at all cost, which doesn’t necessarily mean hitting home runs.

“(The six home run game) was such a fun game and it is good to come out like that,” Holtz said. “Hopefully, I mean, I’d love to do that again. That’d be great but just hitting ground balls will be just as good. We want to go out and get a win any way we can.”

The Panthers will go for the regular season sweep of SEMO today. The game is slated to begin at 3 p.m. Eastern junior pitcher Amber May (12-10) is the projected starter.

Alex McNamee can be reached at 581-7944 or admcnamee@eiu.edu.

Freshman catcher/infielder Abby Wood blocks the plate from Eastern Kentucky freshman shortstop Raquel Howes Friday afternoon at Williams Field.(Danny Damiani/The Daily Eastern News)

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