Stephanie Maday has not surrendered a run in four starts at home this season.

She has provided the Eastern softball team with four wins in those starts, where she has allotted 26 innings pitched (including a five-inning no-hitter on April 6) while lowering her ERA to 2.13 in the process.

“Just playing at home is more relaxing,” Maday said. “We have great fans that cheer for us at home and on the road the fans are cheering against you. It doesn’t have a huge impact, but it is always better to play at home.”

Most recently, Maday pitched back-to-back games against Tennessee-Martin on Saturday and Sunday, leading the Panthers to 1-0 and 4-0 victories, respectively.

Maday gave up one hit to the Skyhawks in each game while walking none. Opponents have just four hits against her in her four starts at Williams Field.

With the help of fellow pitcher Hanna Mennenga, the Panthers were able to keep the Skyhwaks scoreless in all three games during the weekend.

“When I go out there, I just realize I have nothing to lose, so I need to give it everything I have,” Maday said. “This is my last chance — my senior season.”

But Maday’s recent success still was not enough to earn her a second consecutive Ohio Valley Conference Pitcher of the Week, one week removed from her second career no-hitter.

Instead, the nod went to Southern Illinois-Edwardsville’s Haley Chambers, who, as a sophomore, tossed her third career no-hitter against Southeast Missouri on Saturday in a five-inning 10-0 win.

She also recorded two complete game shutouts against Bradley on Thursday and against Southeast Missouri again on Sunday.

Over 19 scoreless innings last week, Chambers gave up just six hits and four walks while striking out 29 batters. She currently leads the OVC in innings pitched with 151.2 and is second in strikeouts with 152 this season.

Edwardsville is the only team ahead of Eastern in the west division of the OVC. The Panthers have the edge in overall record at 30-11 while Edwardsville is 20-18, however, in conference play, the Cougars are 12-3 and the Panthers are 10-4.

Offensively, Tennessee Tech’s Kendall Hooper won Player of the Week.

A native or Hermitage, Tenn., Hooper hit a pair of home runs off a 2-for-3 performance against No. 4 ranked Tennessee to begin the week, as she recorded four of the teams’ five runs in the Golden Eagles’ 13-5 loss.

The senior first baseman then went 5-for-12 with six RBIs in the three-game sweep of OVC foe Tennessee State.

For the week, she hit .467 with 10 RBI, scoring six runs, also recording three doubles and two home runs.

Hooper also extended her OVC-leading RBI streak to seven straight games.

Anthony Catezone can be reached at 581-2812 or ajcatezone@eiu.edu.