SPRINGFIELD, IL --- The weekend will look a little different for the Prairie Star softball team, as they will wait until Sunday to play Drury before traveling to Missouri S&T on Monday to conclude their weekend series. Due to a forecast of rain, the games have been moved while the first-pitch of Sunday's games will remain 12:00, Monday's games at Missouri S&T will be at 1:00 PM.

SETTING THE SCENE
The Prairie Stars (25-21, 11-11) enter the weekend on a five-game winning streak, their second longest of the season. UIS is coming off a weekend in which they swept Saint Joseph's and UIndy, both on the road, giving up just three runs in four games.

Drury (19-28, 6-16) enters the weekend having dropped 11 of their last 13 games, and more recently, three of their last four. The Panthers are currently T-15 in the GLVC standings.

Missouri S&T (18-27, 10-12) comes into the weekend having lost three in a row and four of their last five games. The Miners will host McKendree on the 23^rd before taking on UIS on Monday afternoon.

A LOOK AT THE GLVC
Currently, the Prairie Stars are tied for sixth in the conference with UIndy and William Jewell with an 11-11 record in conference play. However, by sweeping UIndy on the road, UIS holds that tie-breaker and will host William Jewell in the final weekend of the regular season at home.

With eight GLVC games remaining, UIS will play two games against teams ahead of them in the standings and the remaining six against teams tied or below them.

The top eight teams qualify for the GLVC Conference Tournament, which is held at the EastSide Centre in East Peoria, Illinois from May 4-6.

THE LAST TIME…
The Prairie Stars are 8-8 all-time against Drury, winning three of the last four meetings. UIS swept the Panthers at home last season by scores of 3-2 and 1-0. UIS is 2-4 all-time in Springfield, MO.

The Prairie Stars are 13-5 all-time against Missouri S&T, winning the last three meetings and six of the last seven. The Prairie Stars have not surrendered a run to the Miners in their last three meetings, winning 2-0, 8-0, and 1-0. The 13 wins over Missouri S&T are the second most for UIS over any other conference opponent, second only to 15 wins against Rockhurst.

MOVING UP THE RANKINGS
The Prairie Stars now hold the leagues ninth best batting average (.277), and are just five percentage points away from holding the sixth spot. Meanwhile, the pitching staff continues to shut down opponents, holding a 2.90 ERA, seventh best in the league.

UIS has 96 extra-base hits on the season, ranking fourth in the league, while also getting it done on the base paths, stealing 42 bases, fifth most in the GLVC.

Lakyn Wagoner continues to lead the GLVC in triples, tallying seven on the season, three more than the next best in the conference. The seven triples are a UIS single-season record and puts her just four off the all-time record.

Erin Stroup is tenth in the league with 18 walks while BriAnna Edgar continues to get on base via hit-by-pitch, ranking third in the league with 11.

ON THE ROAD AGAIN
The Prairie Stars will conclude a 12-game road swing this weekend, a trip in which they are 5-3 so far. In true road games this season, the Prairie Stars are 7-6 and have won five straight. They hold a team average of .308 on the road with an on-base percentage of .381 and slugging percentage of .463.

In those 13 road games, Amanda Gosbeth is hitting .471 with five doubles and three home runs while Morgan Edwards is hitting .455 with four doubles and three home runs.

In the circle, Jaycee Craver owns a 1.36 ERA in five appearances and four starts while Rachel Goff holds home teams to a .179 average, boasting a 1.71 ERA.

SCOUTING DRURY
The Panthers are currently hitting .260 as a team, the worst mark in the GLVC but boast a 3.68 team ERA, which sits 11^th in the conference. In GLVC games alone, Drury's average drops to .224 while their ERA stays nearly identical at 3.69.

Kelley Conway leads the way offensively for Drury with a .329 average, tallying four doubles and two home runs. Dominique Salinas leads the team with three home runs while Kaelie Smith has a team-high 27 RBI's.

In the circle, Jessica Kjeldgaard has a team-best 3.08 ERA to go along with a 10-15 record while Destiny Bolen holds a 9-13 mark and 4.31 ERA.

SCOUTING MISSOURI S&T
The Miners rank 14^th in the GLVC with a .263 batting average and have scored the third fewest runs in the league. Their team ERA sits at 4.30, which is ahead of only Quincy. In conference games, the Miners average lowers to .259 while their ERA rises to 4.70.

Monica Weiss leads the Miner's with a .364 average while Savannah Fedorchak leads the way with seven home runs and 27 RBI. Missouri S&T has four players over .300 but those are the only four players that are over .250.

In the circle, Avery English leads the way with a 2.64 ERA and holds a 9-13 record. Kati Viets also has a 9-13 record but a 5.14 ERA.

COMING UP NEXT
The Prairie Stars will conclude a 12-game road swing this weekend and return home for the final weekend of the regular season on April 29^th and 30^th. UIS will host William Jewell on Saturday before ending the regular season with Rockhurst on Sunday with both sets up doubleheaders beginning at 12:00 pm.

A senior day ceremony will be held after the conclusion of the doubleheader on Sunday at roughly 4:30 PM.