The Murray State Racers defeated the Evansville Purple Aces in a run-rule victory in the opening round of the 2026 Missouri Valley Conference Softball Championship on May 6 in Carbondale, Illinois.
The win advances Murray State (27-21, 17-9 MVC) to the next round of the tournament. The team took an early lead after Katy Huels singled to bring home Allie Waldron in the second inning. In the third inning, Kynadee Warner scored on a wild pitch and Bailey Broemmer drove in two more runs with a single.
Evansville’s Niki Bode hit a solo home run in the fourth inning to put her team on the board. However, Murray State responded strongly in their half of the fifth inning. Waldron opened with her sixth home run of the season, followed by RBI hits from Huels and Ailey Schyck. Warner added another RBI before Parker Holcombe ended the game with a single that secured a 9-1 win for Murray State.
Bre Haislip pitched all five innings for Murray State, striking out three batters and allowing just three hits and one earned run.
“I think it’s huge to get the win the way we did with the offense rounding into shape,” said head coach Kara Amundson. “I thought Bre threw the best she has in weeks, and although we’ve had some shaky moments, defensively we made all the routine plays we needed to … and anytime you can get any extra rest at this stage of the season it’s huge, not just for Bre but for everybody.”
Murray State will face second-seeded SIU Salukis (33-15, 21-6 MVC) at 3 p.m. CDT on Thursday, May 7.
