EAST PEORIA, Ill. – The Maryville softball team saw its season come to an end on Thursday at the Great Lakes Valley Conference Tournament at the EastSide Centre in East Peoria, Ill.
The Saints split their two contests on Thursday, defeating Illinois Springfield before falling to top-seeded Indianapolis in an elimination game. Maryville closes the 2026 season with a 26-25 overall record.
The Saints opened the day with a 6-3 victory over Illinois Springfield behind a dominant offensive showing from
Laila Ruiz and
Jenna Kosnoff. Ruiz blasted a three-run home run and finished with four RBIs, while Kosnoff went 3-for-4 with a pair of doubles and two RBIs.
Leah Perales added three hits and scored twice in the victory.
The game one win saw the single-season RBI record also be snapped by Ruiz with her home run.
The Saints run at the tournament would end later in the day, falling to No. 1-seeded and No. 2-ranked UIndy 8-0 in five innings.
GAME 1 | Maryville 6, UIS 3
UIS struck first in the opening inning, but the Saints responded in a big way during the third. Perales tripled to open the frame before Kosnoff drove her home with an RBI double. Lenon followed with a single before Ruiz launched a three-run homer to left field to put Maryville ahead 4-1.
The Saints pitching staff kept the Prairie Stars quiet through the middle innings. After
Cora Boyle worked the first 2.1 innings, Maxel entered in relief and stranded a bases-loaded threat in the second before tossing 4.2 innings to earn the win.
UIS cut the lead to one in the sixth following a two-run homer, but Maryville answered immediately in the seventh. Perales and
Payton Deakin opened the inning with back-to-back singles before Kosnoff drove in an insurance run with another RBI single. Ruiz added one more with an RBI groundout to seal the 6-3 win.
GAME 2 | #2 Indianapolis 8, Maryville 0
The Greyhounds wasted little time getting on the board, plating three runs in the first inning behind a pair of RBI singles.
Maryville threatened in the third after
Payton Deakin was hit by a pitch and Kosnoff reached on an error, but Indianapolis starter escaped the jam with a strikeout to preserve the shutout.
Indianapolis broke the game open in the bottom half of the third. Following a pair of singles and a walk, the Hounds' crushed a grand slam to left center to extend the lead to 8-0.
