NCAA regional all-tournament outfielder Cutie Taylor helped the Redbirds to a split on Friday when she slammed a three-run homer against Kentucky in the fourth inning giving the Redbirds a 6-1 lead, that resulted in a 9-3 win over the Wildcats.
In their first match-up against Kentucky, the Redbirds had sharp pitching from Audra Rast and powerful hitting by Taylor and catcher Shea Wesley who went 2-4 and 3-4 for the game. Head coach
Melinda Fischer, having never played Kentucky in her 17 seasons with ISU softball, thought her team competed well in their season opener.
In the first game, we started off very strong scoring in the first inning, said Fischer. We made adjustments on defense and made some nice plays that may have resulted in scoring from the other team. Our first game really helped to give us some confidence.
In their second game, ISU fell 3-0 against the host of the tournament, Florida International, despite their strong defensive efforts. Shortstop Abbie Scott and second baseman Kate Stake, both gave a nice glove to the Redbirds, while Taylor again came through with a nice bat, hitting 2-3 against the Panthers.
Despite the loss, Fischer feels her team gave a nice effort during both games, hoping their energy and aggressive attitudes will carry on throughout the weekend.
We had a lot of great opportunities that just didnt fall through, said Fischer. The second game was a little different than the first because of both our concentration level and endurance being a little lower. These are things though, that will improve with time, which are the reasons that these tournaments are important in finding combinations in our lineup.
The Redbirds begin play at 12 p.m., Saturday, against the Georgia Bulldogs, which will result in a seed to begin tournament play.
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