LAFAYETTE, La. – UIC found its groove Friday morning to claim a dominating 11-1 victory against Samford before it came up short in a 3-0 loss to Iowa on the first day of the Mardi Gras Classic at Lamson Park. The Flames move to 1-2 on the year.
 
HEADLINES vs. SAMFORD

• Hot Off the Bat: The Flames executed early and grabbed a 4-0 lead in the first. Lexi Watts led off with an infield single and recorded her first steal of the year before she trekked around the bases on a home run to straightaway center from Kayla Wedl. UIC loaded the bases with two walks and single from Taylor Cairns then Emily Wetzel singled into center to score two runs.
• Insurance in the Second: Watts made her way across the plate again in the second as she led off the inning with a triple and came in on a sacrifice fly from Skylee James.
• Flames Convert on Miscue: Another run was scored for UIC in the third as Cairns and Claire Crane went back-to-back with singles before a wild pitch allowed Cairns to score all the way from second to go up 6-0.
• Errors Work in UIC's favor: A total of three errors were committed by Samford in the fifth inning, allowing the Flames to control a 7-0 lead. Cairns and Crane both reached on fielding errors before they turned the double steal, with the Bulldogs adding on another error on the play to score Cairns.
• Watts Remains Perfect: In her fourth plate appearance of the game, Watts got down the bunt single to go a perfect 4-for-4. She used her speed to get all the way to third on a sac bunt from Wedl and scored her third run as James hit an infield single.
• Bulldogs End Shutout: With a mere two hits across the first five innings, Samford converted in the sixth as a pair of leadoff singles and back-to-back fielder's choice plays allowed one run to score.
• No Stopping the Flames: Already with a commanding 8-1 lead, UIC headed into the seventh and tacked on more runs. Cairns led off with a walk then stole second and scored on a double dropped down the left field line by Wetzel. Maddie Spinks then came up with her first career hit before Watts grabbed her fifth hit of the game and James plated Spinks on a single to center.

 
NOTABLES vs. SAMFORD

• The Flames went off at the plate, racking up 14 hits from seven players. Watts led the team with a career-best 5-for-5 performance, as James, Cairns and Wetzel also had multi-hit efforts with two apiece.
• James (3), Wetzel (3), Wedl (2) and Watts (1) made up the nine RBI as Cairns scored four of the runs, coming across the plate each time she reached base.
• Karissa Frazier threw the complete game as she limited Samford to just four hits and one walk and struck out two in her 101-pitch performance.

 
HEADLINES vs. IOWA

• Infield Clears the Jam: In the second, Iowa looked to threaten as it loaded the bases with a walk, error and single with one out, but Wedl grabbed a liner on the next play and threw it to Tiana Mack-Miller to turn the double play.
• Hawkeyes Strike First: Iowa claimed a 2-0 lead in the third as an error and hit by pitch put two on with one out. Following a double steal, a single scored the first run and a sac fly plated the other.
• Griman Tries to Answer: After Mack-Miller and Cairns singled and were left standing in the fourth, UIC had its best look at getting on the board as Alyssa Griman came to the plate in the fifth with one out and sent the ball out to left field but was robbed of a home run as Allie Wood made the grab over the wall.
• Iowa Knocks in Another: The Hawkeyes added its final run in the fifth as a pair of singles and a ground out was all they needed to plate the runner.

 
NOTABLES vs. IOWA

• Four hits was all UIC could muster with Mack-Miller, Cairns, Crane and Spinks making up the total.
• Marley Hanlon earned her first career start and threw the complete game, allowing Iowa to just five hits and two walks as she struck out one.

 
UP NEXT

• UIC heads into day two of the Mardi Gras Classic on Saturday with a single game at 11:30 a.m. CT against Evansville.