CHARLESTON, Ill. – With three weekends of play remaining in the Ohio Valley Conference schedule, Tennessee Tech finds itself in the position to improve its standing and make a return to the conference tournament.

 

The downside, they've got OVC leader Eastern Illinois standing in the way this weekend to make it a tough road.

 

The Golden Eagles face the Panthers in a three-game set with a doubleheader on Saturday starting at 1 p.m., while Sunday's finale is scheduled for noon. All three games are set to be streamed on ESPN+ (subscription required).

 

The Panthers (30-12 overall, 14-4 in the OVC) have a two-game cushion over Lindenwood and Southeast Missouri (both 12-6 in the conference). Tennessee State (11-7 OVC), Southern and Southern Indiana (10-8 OVC) are in the league's top five, while UT Martin (9-9), Tech (8-10) and SIUE (6-12) fill out the tournament field as it would stand if the event started today.

 

The Golden Eagles (18-18 overall) host SIUE next weekend, then close out OVC play at Tennessee State the following week.

 

EIU leads the conference in batting and has the power numbers to back it up with 65 doubles, 31 home runs, 194 RBI and 217 runs scored – all tops in the league. Only three teams – Tech, SIUE and Southern Indiana – have struck out fewer times and Tech is the only team to steal more bases.

 

The Panthers have three of the league's top 10 batters with Jadin Justman (.386, 27 RBI, 6 HR), Kendall Grover (.352, 37 RBI, 8 HR) and Rachel Kaufman (.340, 32 RBI, 8 HR) leading the pace.

 

In the circle, McKenzie Oslanzi ranks as the conference's top pitcher with a 1.37 ERA over 138 innings of work, striking out 127 and allowing 41 runs – 27 earned. She averages 0.96 walks and 6.44 strikeouts per seven innings.

 

As a team, EIU is batting .304 with 101 extra-base hits – 65 doubles, five triples and 31 home runs – while driving in 194 RBI and scoring 217 runs. Five players with more than 90 at-bats are hitting over .300 for the season. 

 

The Panthers do like to steal with Grover swiping 16 bags, Karson Davey 12.

 

EIU's team ERA is also a strong one with a 2.54 mark, striking out 238 batters to 73 walks. Opponents are hitting .257 against them.

 

For Tech as a team, the Golden Eagles are hitting .289 with 70 extra-base hits – 57 doubles, one triple and 12 home runs. Carmen Betts leads the team with a .389 batting average, collecting a team-best 44 hits, 11 doubles, the lone triple, three home runs and 35 RBI. Abby Buettner (.326) is also above .300 on the season, while Sydney Kirby (.290) has 22 RBI, Abby Shoulders (.289) has 20 RBI and 26 runs scored and Mac Fitzgerald (.284) has 12 RBI, 33 runs scored and ranks fourth nationally in stolen bases (29) and second in steals per game (0.81).

 

In the circle, Tech has a 3.69 ERA, paced by Emily York's 2.10. York (6-4) leads the conference in appearances with 28 and is currently third in the nation in saves with seven. Payton Wagner (2.36 ERA) has a 7-3 mark.