MOUNT PLEASANT, S.C. – The UIC softball team (7-2) concluded its run at the Wyndham Garden Cougar Classic on Saturday by coming back from a 3-2 loss to Winthrop (3-4) to take down Eastern Kentucky (0-3), 2-1, in eight innings at Patriots Point. The Flames ended the tournament with a 2-2 record to go to 7-2 overall.
 
UIC was limited to a combined 11 hits as it was evenly matched in both games. Savannah Soppet put up three hits and collected the only two RBI distributed on the day, while Kayla Wedl and Taylor Cairns were the only other players to have at least two hits. Jasmine Willis additionally had an impressive day at the plate as she reached base six times with five walks and a hit by pitch, and she scored three of the Flames' four runs.
 
UIC will take to the West Coast next weekend as it is scheduled to compete in the Santa Clara Invitational for the third consecutive season. During the three day tournament set to run Friday through Sunday (Feb. 24-26), the Flames will be faced with South Dakota twice, Weber State, Creighton and the host Broncos at the Santa Clara Softball Field in Santa Clara, Calif.
 
Winthrop 3, UIC 2
 
For the second-straight game, UIC was outhit by its opponent, 7-6, as it could not find a response to the three runs scored by Winthrop. Willis reached base in every at bat with three walks and one hit by pitch, while Soppet led the drive in hits with two and also earned credit for the lone RBI.
 
Karissa Frazier threw the complete game as she allowed seven hits, struck out one, walked five and earned credit for two of the three runs scored.
 
The Flames went around the bases early as they were able to plate a run in the first. Tiana Mack-Miller reached on an error, Willis was hit by a pitch and Wedl singled. A fielder's choice got the out at home before Soppet singled into left to bring in one.
 
UIC put base runners on in the next two innings but could not push them across the plate, whereas Winthrop went without a hit until the third frame, when it took the 2-1 lead following a pair of singles, a sacrifice fly and a RBI single.
 
After Alice Fitzpatrick was left at third in the top of the fourth following the first extra-base hit of the tournament with a double, the Eagles came out in the bottom of the inning to score one run for the 3-1 advantage with a single scored the runner from second.
 
The lead was narrowed to 3-2 in the top of the fifth when Willis walked, swiped the first base of her career, moved to third on a ground out and scored on a wild pitch with two outs.
 
In the following inning, Fitzpatrick walked and Claire Crane singled but both were left in scoring position. The bottom half featured bases loaded for Winthrop but the Flames got out of it unharmed.
 
UIC made its final push in the top of the seventh as Willis led off with her third walk of the game and then advanced on a sacrifice bunt by Wedl and a wild pitch, but she would stay there to end the game.
 
UIC 2, Eastern Kentucky 1 (8)
 
It took an extra inning to decide a drawn-out pitchers dual that went scoreless through seven innings. UIC was held to five hits while Eastern Kentucky added just three. Mack-Miller, Wedl, Cairns, Soppet and Lexi Watts made up the tallies, while Soppet was responsible for the game-winning RBI off a sacrifice fly.
 
Elaine Heflin threw her third complete game of the season while she maintained her perfect 0.00 earned-run average despite the Colonels scoring her first opposing run. In eight innings, she struck out seven, allowed only three hits and walked two in 31 batters faced.
 
The Flames loaded the bases in the first off a trio of walks for Mack-Miller, Willis and Cairns but three remained at the end of the inning. They put more runners on in the third when Willis walked again and Wedl recorded the first UIC hit with two outs but both were held on base.
 
Seven straight Eastern Kentucky batters were retired across three innings before the Colonels loaded the bases in the top of the fourth off a pair of hit by pitches and a walk but a strikeout capped the frame.
 
The Flames put leadoff runners on in both the fourth and fifth with singles from Soppet and Mack-Miller, respectively, but each remained at the end of each inning.
 
In the bottom of the seventh, UIC tried to take the deciding run as Smith came in to pinch hit and reached on an EKU error, and Watts followed with a two-out single that caused the Colonels to commit another error on the play but both runners were left in scoring position.
 
With the tiebreaker rule in place to start the eighth, the leadoff batter singled and advanced to second on the throw as the Flames tried to get the lead runner at third, with the go-ahead run coming in on a groundout.
 
Willis began the bottom half of the eighth on second and came around to score as Wedl attempted a sacrifice bunt that EKU threw away for an error and to place Wedl on second. In the next at-bat, Cairns beat the throw at first for a single, moving Wedl to third, and then stole second. Soppet stepped to the plate and sent a fly ball to center that allowed Wedl to tag and score the game-winning run for the walk-off victory.