Tournament MVP Tara Oltman went the distance and struck out six as Creighton topped Southern Illinois, 3-2, in the championship game of the State Farm MVC Softball Championship at Buel Field in Des Moines, Iowa on the campus of Drake University.

With the game tied at one in the top of the fourth inning, MVC Player of the Year Renae Sinkler hit an opposite field home run with one runner on to stake the Bluejays to a two-run lead.  The homer was Sinkler's 24th of the season, extending her MVC single-season record.

Southern Illinois put a pair of runners on in the bottom of the seventh and cut the lead to one on a passed ball.  Creighton third baseman Michelle Graner ended the game on a running catch against the fence on a foul ball from Katie Wilson.

 

All-Tournament Team

Tara Oltman, Creighton - MVP

Renae Sinkler, Creighton

Amy Baker, Creighton

Lauren Larson, Creighton

Danielle Glosson, Southern Illinois

Cristina Trapani, Southern Illinois

Allie Hanson, Southern Illinois

Natalie Rose, Missouri State

Jenna Schwark, Missouri State

Abby Olson, Illinois State

Beth Current, Illinois State

Eranne Daugharthy, UNI

Lindsie Mitts, Wichita State

Brynne Dordel, Drake

Jen Stahlhut, Evansville

 

Southern Illinois (20-5 MVC) is the tournament's top seed, followed by Illinois State (19-5).  The Salukis and Redbirds earn double-byes and will begin play on Friday.  Creighton (18-7) earned the third seed and an opening round bye. 

UNI (13-12) claimed the fourth seed and the tournament's final bye with its series win over Missouri State (13-12) during the final regular-season weekend to claim the head-to-head tiebreaker.  Tournament host Drake (12-13) is the sixth seed and Wichita State (10-14) and Evansville (10-16) are the seventh and eighth seeds, respectively. 

Missouri State will take on Evansville in the tournament's opening game on Thursday at 11 a.m., followed by Wichita State and Drake at 1:30 p.m.  The first nine tournament games will be available for viewing on MVC Live, the league's video streaming platform.  The championship game will air live on Saturday on Fox Sports Midwest at 2:30 p.m.

Drake to Host MVC Championship

Drake University will serve as host for the 2010 State Farm Missouri Valley Conference Softball Championship for the first time since 1992 and for the second time in school history, from May 13-15. The 2010 event will be played at Ron Buel Field on the Drake campus in Des Moines, Iowa.

Renovations to Buel Field completed in 2005 included a Musco lighting system, press box, sound system and internet access, along with a low brick wall backstop and netting system and a state-of-the-art drainage system.

In 2009, Bradley became the only team in the 27-year history of the conference softball tournament to win the title as the host institution.   

New Format

In 2010, the State Farm MVC Softball Championship will unveil a new bracket after two years under the double-bye, single-elimination format.  Three games have been added to this year's bracket, allowing teams losing games five, six and eight the opportunity to play their way into the winner-take-all championship game in the modified double-elimination set-up.

Tune In

Fans can now follow the State Farm MVC Softball Championship on MVC Live, the conference's new video streaming program. MVC Live is a partnership between the Missouri Valley Conference and WebStream Productions - the creators of the highly-acclaimed Horizon League Network. Live game action from a television-like production including multiple cameras, graphics and professional announcers will be available the banner below for all games leading into the televised final.

 

 

 

 

2010 State Farm MVC Softball Championship Information
MVC Softball Info.	Tournament Info.	Facility	Event Preview
Standings	Bracket	Buel Field	All-Conference Teams
Statistics	MVC Live	Directions	2009 Tournament Review
Weekly Notebook	Records	Weather

 

2010 State Farm Missouri Valley Conference Softball Championship Schedule
Thursday - Saturday • May, 13-15 • Buel Field, Des Moines, Iowa • Drake, host
Thursday, May 13
Gm	Teams	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10		R	H	E	Start	Stats	Story	Live Stats	Video
1	No. 8 Evansville	0	0	0	0	0	0	0					0	4	1	11:30 a.m.	Box Score	Recap	Live Stats
	No. 5 Missouri State	2	0	1	0	0	0	x					3	6	0
2	No. 7 Wichita State	0	1	0	0	0	0	0					1	2	2	1:30 p.m.	Box Score	Recap	Live Stats
	No. 6 Drake	0	0	0	0	0	0	0					0	3	0
Gm	Teams	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10		R	H	E	Start	Stats	Story	Live Stats	Video
3	No. 5 Missouri State	0	0	2	2	0	0	0					4	6	2	4 p.m.	Box Score	Recap	Live Stats
	No. 4 UNI	0	1	0	0	0	1	1					3	8	3
4	No. 7 Wichita State	0	2	0	0	1	1	0	0				4	7	1	6:30 p.m.	Box Score	Recap	Live Stats
	No. 3 Creighton	0	0	0	2	1	1	0	1				5	6	2
Friday, May 14
Gm	Teams	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10		R	H	E	Start	Stats	Story	Live Stats	Video
5	No. 5 Missouri State	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0		0	1	1	11 a.m.	Box Score	Recap	Live Stats
	No. 1Southern Illinois	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	2		2	5	0
6	No. 3 Creighton	2	0	0	0	0	0	0					2	5	1	1:30 p.m.	Box Score	Recap	Live Stats
	No. 2 Illinois State	1	0	0	0	0	0	0					1	5	0
7	No. 5 Missouri State	2	0	0	0	0	1	3					6	9	0	4:15 p.m.	Box Score	Recap	Live Stats
	No. 2 Illinois State	0	0	0	0	0	1	0					1	6	0
8	No. 3 Creighton	0	0	2	0	0	0	0					2	4	1	6:45 p.m.	Box Score	Recap	Live Stats
	No. 1 Southern Illinois	0	0	0	0	0	0	1					1	5	1
Saturday, May 15
Gm	Teams	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10		R	H	E	Start	Stats	Story	Live Stats	Video
9	No. 5 Missouri State	2	0	0	1	0	0	0					3	5	0	11 a.m.	Box Score	Recap	Live Stats
	No. 1 Southern Illinois	2	2	0	0	0	0	x					4	7	2
10	No. 3 Creighton	1	0	0	0	2	0	0					3	6	3	2:30 p.m.	Box Score	Recap	Live Stats	FS Midwest
	No. 1 Southern Illinois	0	0	0	1	0	0	1					2	4	1