PEORIA, Ill. ? Bradley sophomore outfielder Amanda Clack (Hillsboro, Mo./Hillsboro H.S.) hit her eighth home run of the season to tie the single season Bradley record, but visiting Southern Illinois swept the Missouri Valley Conference doubleheader from the Braves. The Salukis won game one, 4-0, then followed with a 7-2 victory in the nightcap.

Clack's home run came in the sixth inning of game two to draw the Braves within five at 7-2. The solo shot was her eight home run of the season, tying Brittany Mynsberge (2004) and Natalie Quinn (1996) for the most in single season history.

In game one, the Salukis (29-23, 14-8 MVC) broke a scoreless tie with a pair of runs in the third inning. The first five batters in the inning reached base, as the Salukis used a string of bloop singles to take a 2-0 lead. Alicia Garza and Katie Wilson each contributed bases-loaded singles to drive home a run. BU starting pitcher Ashley Birdsong (Otis, Ore./Taft H.S.) recorded a pair of strikeouts and a fielder's choice to get out of the jam.

SIU stretched their lead to 4-0 with two more runs in the top half of the sixth inning. Katie Wagner's single to left field scored Lauren Haas, followed by a pinch hit RBI single from Allie Hanson two batters later.

The Braves (12-26, 4-18 MVC) had just four hits in the first game, led by a 2-for-3 effort from sophomore outfielder Janay Mitchell (Woodridge, Ill./Downers Grove South H.S.). Mitchell registered her sixth double of the season in the sixth inning. BU stranded five runners in the contest, including a runner in scoring position in each of the first four innings.

Haas went 4-for-4 to lead the Salukis, while Katie McNamara picked up the win in relief for SIU to move to 8-3 on the season. McNamara entered the game in the fourth inning after Bradley's Alycia Bachkora (Overland Park, Kan./Notre Dame de Sion H.S.) hit a line drive off the leg of SIU starting pitcher Nikki Waters. Waters had allowed three hits through the first three innings. Birdsong took the loss for BU to fall to 9-17. She struck out nine and walked none in allowing four runs on 11 hits.

The Salukis jumped to an early lead in the nightcap, scoring single runs in the second and third inning. Wagner hit a solo home run for a 1-0 lead in the second, followed by a sacrifice fly from Haas in the third to make it 2-0 in favor of the visitors in the third. The lead became 5-0 after SIU took advantage of two BU errors in the fifth. Wagner collected her second RBI of the game with a double to right field and later scored when Hanson reached on a fielding error with two outs in the inning.

Bradley senior outfielder Trish Kowalewski (Yorkville, Ill./Downers Grove North H.S.) provided an answer for the Braves in the bottom of the fifth with her third home run of the season. Kowalewski now has 13 career home runs, tied for third-most all-time in Bradley history. After Haas and Garza drove in runs in the sixth for a 7-1 lead, Clack followed her record-tying solo shot in the bottom of the frame.

Danielle Glosson threw a complete game for the Salukis, running her record to 8-8 in the win. BU senior starting pitcher Rebecca Bishop (Carmichael, Calif./Del Campo H.S.) recorded her 100th career strikeout in the fourth inning, but took the loss after allowing five runs through 4.1 innings. Clack gave up two runs in 2.2 innings of relief.

The loss mathematically eliminates the Braves from contention for the State Farm Missouri Valley Conference Softball Tournament. BU will play the final game of the season Sunday at noon against the Salukis, wrapping up the three-game league series.