Eastern Illinois softball will host Southeast Missouri Wednesday in a doubleheader; first pitch to be thrown at 2 p.m. at Williams Field.

Eastern will be looking to create positive momentum as the Panthers have lost 13 games in a row, and are currently 5-22 overall, and 0-5 in Ohio Valley Conference play.

“We just have to stay positive throughout the season,” senior pitcher Kristen Becker said. “We’ve noticed good and bad things this season.”

Eastern’s last victory was a 3-0 win against Alabama A&M in the Samford Invitational. Last weekend, the Panthers lost two games to conference rival Tennessee-Martin. The Panthers couldn’t overcome an early three-run deficit and lost the front end of the doubleheader 3-2.

The Skyhawks took the second game of the double header 8-0 due to the pitching and hitting of Nicole Davis went two for three at the plate and struck out six in a complete game shutout.

Leading the Panthers offense is junior pitcher/infielder Kari Hagerty. Hagerty is currently hitting .263, with 20 hits on the year. Leading the Panthers on the mound is Becker. The Belleville native is 4-11, with a 3.03 ERA, and was named to the All-Tournament team at the Samford Invitational. Becker will be in the circle as a starter for one half of the doubleheader against the Otahkians. Eastern will look to give its most experienced pitcher better run support. The Panthers are currently seventh out of eight OVC teams in hitting with a .203 average and are last in total runs.

“That will be pretty big for us because it will allow the team to relax early,” Becker said.

The Southeast Missouri Otahkians are 7-18 overall, and 3-1 in the OVC. They are coming off a weekend doubleheader split with Austin Peay, winning game one 5-0, and dropping the second 2-1.

During the 2003 season, SEMO has had troubles in the field by making the second most errors (43) in conference.

Otahkians coach Lana Richmond is in her 21st year at Southeast Missouri, and is the winningest coach in OVC history.

Richmond’s Otahkians are led offensively by powerhouse Alana Bagby-Leonard. Bagby-Leonard is hitting .292, with 19 hits, including two home runs and three doubles. Jessica Hunter, a junior pitcher, is heading the pitching staff. She currently has a 3-4 record, with a 3.73 ERA.