at UT Martin
Martin, Tenn. (Bettye Giles Softball Field)

Saturday, March 23, 1 p.m. start (DH)
Sunday, March 24, 1 p.m.
Video: ESPN+
Live Stats: SIUEstats.com

ROAD SWING
Week three of the Ohio Valley Conference regular season sends SIUE softball to Martin, Tennessee, to face UT Martin in a three-game series Saturday and Sunday. This is games two through four of a five-game road swing. After this series, the Cougars travel to Champaign, Illinois, to face Illinois in a Wednesday contest.
LAST TIME OUT
The Cougars fell 10-0 in five innings at Evansville on Tuesday.
SERIES RECORDS
SIUE is 25-20 all-time against the Skyhawks. The Cougars lost all three regular season games and the first game of the OVC Tournament last season to the Skyhawks but would rebound to eliminate UT Martin from the 2023 OVC Championships.
LAST SEASON FOR THE COUGARS
SIUE is coming off a 30-26 season in which the Cougars advanced to the title game of the 2023 Ohio Valley Conference Tournament. The Cougars won 10 of their last 12 games and the season-best six straight games to close out the regular season. SIUE, the No. 5 seed at the 2023 OVC Championships, knocked out the No. 1, No. 3 and No. 4 seeds in the tournament.
LONGEST HITTING STREAK
Paige Rocha holds the longest hitting streak in Division I heading into the UT Martin series. She has recorded a hit in 20 straight games, reaching back to the Texas A&M Commerce series in February. The school record is 27 set by SIUE Hall of Famer Erin Newman in 2001.
SIUE'S TOP FOUR HITTING STREAKS OF DIVISION I ERA
20, Paige Rocha (2024); 15, Alyssa Heren (2017); 15, Paige Rocha (2022); 14, Lexi King (2022)
HIT MACHINE
Rocha recorded a Division I era-best 74 hits last season. It was the most hits by a Cougar since Alicia DeShasier hit 82 in 2006. All four of the players who have more hits in a season by the Cougars now reside in the SIUE Athletics Hall of Fame (DeShasier, Jenny Esker, Katie Waldo and Erin Newman). Rocha continued that trend with a team-leading 41 hits this season. She is ranked 14th nationally while leading the OVC.
LEAGUE LEADERS
Jenna Herron leads the OVC in sacrifice bunts per game (0.22). Rocha leads the OVC in total bases (72) and No. 3 in the nation in doubles with 13.
YEAR TWO
Lone Tree, Iowa, native Ben Sorden is in his second season as head coach of the Cougars. Sorden came to SIUE after holding positions at Michigan State and Indiana, helping the pitching staffs to national honors and top-notch results.