The University of Illinois Springfield softball program travels north this week for the 2019 GLVC Championship Tournament. The tournament will be held on Thursday-Saturday at the EastSide Centre in East Peoria, Ill.
 
UIS will be making its sixth all-time appearance at the event since becoming eligible in 2011. The Prairie Stars have made the field for five out of the last six seasons. The program has won at least one game in the double-elimination event in four of its previous events, including finishing second in 2012.
 
This year's team will enter the championships as the number five seed. The Prairie Stars will open the tournament on Thursday at 10 a.m. against fourth-seed Maryville. The winner of that contest will play the winner of the Missouri-St. Louis versus Lewis game, while the two losers of those first-round games will face off in an elimination game. Both of those games will take place immediately after the first games on Thursday at approximately 12 p.m.
 
If UIS wins at least one game on Thursday, it will continue play on Friday. Game times that day are 11 a.m., 1 p.m., 3 p.m., and 5 p.m. The GLVC Championship game will be on Saturday at 12 p.m., and if a second game is needed, that will immediately follow at 2 p.m.
 
UIS swept Maryville in the regular season by scores of 7-6 and 5-0. In the first game, the Prairie Stars led 6-3 before a Maryville rally forced extra innings. In the eighth, Bree Derhake led off the bottom of the inning with a walk-off homer. Jaycee Craver, who won game one in relief, threw a complete game shutout on game two. She allowed just five hits, while striking out six. Calla Wickenhauser had three hits and three RBI in that series, while Morgan Edwards and Derhake both scored three times.
 
UIS split the season series with both Missouri-St. Louis and Lewis. On the other side of the bracket, the Prairie Stars split with both Drury and Indianapolis, and were swept by Southern Indiana and Truman State.
 
The Prairie Stars will enter the tournament with a 26-22 overall record. They are currently ranked seventh in the NCAA regional rankings, and a strong showing at the GLVC Tournament should help them make a second straight NCAA Regional appearance.
 
Natalie Cokel has been the team's offense leader as she is batting .354 with a .479 on-base percentage. She is tied for the team-high of 31 runs along with Wickenhauser and Derhake. Wickenhauser leads the team with 36 RBI. Wickenhauser and Edwards are both batting over .300 and have a combined 13 home runs.
 
On the mound, Payton Long is 11-5 with a 3.40 ERA. Opponents are batting just .237 off of her, and she has 106 strikeouts on the year. Craver is the school's career wins and strikeout leader. She has a team-high 3.26 ERA and 13 wins. Addison Bryant has been the team's top relief pitcher, as she has a 3.44 ERA in her first season at UIS.
 
For more information about the GLVC Championships, click on the championship webpage here.