EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. – Due to the threat of severe weather, SIUE softball will start its 2026 Ohio Valley Conference regular season one day earlier than planned at Tennessee Tech.

The three-game series now begins Friday at 1 p.m. with a second game set for 3 p.m. On Saturday, the two teams will face off at 9 a.m. in the final game of the set. The series will be played at Tech Softball Field in Cookeville, Tennessee, and will be broadcast live on ESPN+.

SIUE enters the weekend with a 7-12 record while Tennessee Tech holds a 2-14 mark.

The Cougars are coming off their final tournament preceding the OVC regular season. Betsy Woodward led the Cougar offense this past weekend with a .417 batting average, including a bases-clearing double.

Freshman pitcher Mia Volpert is tops on the team with a 4-4 record in the circle with a 3.38 earned run average. Avery Arwood, the OVC's reigning Freshman of the Year, has recorded a team-leading 26 strikeouts in 25 1/3 innings pitched.

Raegan Duncan holds the Cougars' top batting average headed into OVC play at .306. Kaylin Fahy leads the team in RBIs with eight.