Southeast Missouri State softball ends tournament with 8-1 victory

Southeast Missouri State softball ended the Leon Smith Classic on a positive note with an 8-1 win over Alabama State on Sunday in Oxford, Alabama.

SEMO (13-5) went 3-1 at the tournament, which it hosted at Choccolocco Park, and won its final two games.

Against the Hornets (5-16), a solid start from Alexis Estes and a balanced offensive performance powered the Redhawks to a victory.

Estes threw 4 1/3 scoreless innings and allowed just two hits. She struck out three and improved to 5-0 on the season.

Relief pitchers Aubrey Denno and Mackenzie Hoelting combined to throw the final 2 2/3 innings.

Southeast started strong with two runs in the second and pulled away with five runs in the fourth as ASU starter Vanessa Bradford left the game during that frame.

For the Redhawks, eight different players picked up at least one hit as the team finished with 10. Rachel Anderson led the way with a 2-for-3 day at the plate, including a run scored. Parker Bandy was 2-for-4 with three RBIs and a run.

Southeast will travel to Georgia Tech on Tuesday and then Kennesaw State on Wednesday.

Tennis

Southeast opened its home slate with two wins, beating Maryville and Evansville.

SEMO (7-3) won five out of the six single matches in a 6-1 win over Maryville (8-4).

Against Evansville (8-9), the Redhawks secured a 4-2 win. .after staking Southeast's final non-conference game is 1 p.m. Wednesday at Lipscomb.