EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. – Southeast Missouri scored four runs in the seventh inning on its way to an 8-3 win over SIUE in the opener of a three-game Ohio Valley Conference series at Simmons Baseball Complex.

After winning the first two conference games of the year, the Cougars have dropped five straight OVC contests and fall to 2-5. Overall the Cougars are 11-10. Southeast Missouri is 11-8 overall and 4-3 in the OVC.

Already leading 4-2 going into the seventh inning, SIUE reliever Brian Coulter walked a pair of hitters with one out before being relieved by Tristan Walters. Southeast Missouri centerfielder Dan Holst greeted Walters with a three-run home run to right to give the Redhawks an 8-3 lead.

"A couple free bases and a pitch up in the zone and the tight game goes away," SIUE Head Coach Sean Lyons said. "They had a big inning to separate themselves."

Holst was 2 for 4 with the three RBIs.

The Redhawks got on the board in a hurry against SIUE starter Brock Fulkerson.

Clayton Evans led off the game with a single and Chris Osborne followed with a two-run home run to left to put Southeast up 2-0.   

"The first inning was boom-boom, two run homer and then after that settled in," Lyons said of his starter. "He walked the line a little for a while but was able to get through fine."

Fulkerson (1-3) settled in to pitch six innings. He allowed four runs on eight hits. He struck out five and did not walk a batter.

The Cougars got solo home runs from Mario Tursi in the third inning and Dustin Woodcock in the fourth before scoring a run on three hits in the eighth inning. Alec Skender singled and then scored on a sacrifice fly from Woodcock.

"Our guys did battle back to give us some opportunities late, but we just didn't get those big hits there at the end," Lyons added.

Tursi finished 3 for 4 with the home run and a double.

"Mario had a great day at the plate," Lyons said. "Hopefully that continues throughout the weekend. He was just putting the barrel on balls. He got one up in the wind and got his first home run of the year."

The Cougars finished with 11 hits, but didn't have more than a single hit in an inning until the eighth.

"They swung the bats o.k.," Lyons said. "One of the big differences is to get a guy on base we had to earn it with hits. While the free bases are what bit us."

Southeast Missouri starter Clay Chandler (4-2) tossed seven innings in the win. He allowed two runs on six hits.

The series will continue with a noon start Saturday. Originally scheduled for 2 p.m., the teams agreed to move the game because of possible weather concerns

"With the possibility of rain all day, we're going to bump it up a little bit to give us the biggest window," Lyons said.