The University of Illinois Springfield softball team split a GLVC doubleheader on Monday at Quincy. The Hawks won the first game 10-4, before the Prairie Stars bounced back with a 4-3 win in game two. Natalie Cokel had a big day at the plate, going six-for-seven with a double and homer.
 
In the second game, UIS scored one run in four of the seven innings, and it led 4-1 going into the bottom of the seventh. Quincy scored two runs in just two batters in the seventh, but Peyton Long got two popouts and a strikeout to end the game.
 
Long threw a complete game for her eighth win of the season. She allowed just one earned run, three hits, and walked one. She struck out five batters.
 
Offensively, Cokel went three-for-three with a double and one run. Morgan Edwards and Calla Wickenhauser both hit solo homers. Kendra Peifer had the other run, and Madi Torry had a RBI in the game.
 
In the opener, the Hawks scored five times in the bottom of the first and never trailed. UIS cut it to 5-3 after the top of the third, but Quincy responded with five unanswered runs to put the game away.
 
Cokel was three-for-four in the game with two runs and a RBI. She hit a solo homer in the seventh inning. Ali Bortmess and Wickenhauser both had two hits, and Grace Harris had one RBI and one run.
 
UIS is now 21-19 on the season and 10-8 in GLVC play. The Prairie Stars will have their final home games of the season this weekend, starting with Friday's 12 p.m. doubleheader against Lewis.