GAME RESULTS
Western Illinois 4, Saint Louis 3
Saint Louis 5, St. Thomas (Minn.) 2
Saturday, February 11, 2023
The Dome at the Parkway Bank Sports Complex
Des Plaines, Ill.
 
THE BASICS
•Saint Louis concluded play in its opening tournament of the 2023 season Saturday with a split, falling 4-3 to Western Illinois and defeating St. Thomas (Minn.) 5-2.
 
GAME 1 – HOW IT HAPPENED
•The Billikens grabbed a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the second inning on Kendall Johnson's RBI single.
•SLU doubled the lead in the fourth when Johnson was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded.
•Western Illinois tied it in the fifth and took a 4-2 lead in the sixth.
•Saint Louis pulled to within a run on Natalie Sullivan's sixth-inning sacrifice fly but left the bases loaded.
 
GAME 1 BILLIKEN NOTABLES
•Johnson, Gabbie Kowalik and Jane Kaniecki had two hits apiece.
•Chloe Rhine (double), Kelsey Etling, Ashley Marietta and Jocelyn Abbott each had a hit.
 
GAME 2 – HOW IT HAPPENED
•SLU got on the board quickly in the top of the first, with one run scoring on an error and another crossing on Kaniecki's RBI single.
•The Billikens answered a St. Thomas second-inning run with a tally in the third on Rhine's RBI single.
•St. Thomas scored once in the fourth to make it a one-run game.
•In the sixth, Kowalik delivered an RBI single, and the Bills' final run scored on an error.
 
GAME 2 BILLIKEN NOTABLES
•Chloe Wendling went the distance in the circle, tossing a four-hitter with seven strikeouts and just two walks.
•Etling doubled, while Sullivan and Abby Mallo singled.
 
UP NEXT
The Billikens travel to Cape Girardeau Sunday, Feb. 19, for a noon doubleheader vs. Southeast Missouri State.