The Illinois State softball team (14-4) completed its sweep of the Hilltopper Classic with a 10-2 win over Belmont and a 6-0 shutout of host Western Kentucky in the title game to run its record in the tournament to 4-0. Redbird Jen Wright was named tournament MVP, while Tricia Gaither, Shannon Nicholson and Dominique Borba each earned a spot on the all-tournament team.
It seemed like every game someone different stepped up, head coach
Melinda Fischer said. Tiffany (Prager) doesnt have a lot of experience in the outfield but she stepped up when we needed her, and Jackie (Williams) got some innings in the outfield. We played really well as a unit and we were able to get our bats going to get some back-to-back hits. Our infield played pretty well, our defense was sound and we had good pitching all weekend.
What Im most excited about is that we came into this tournament with some goals in mind, and our players were able to achieve almost all of them. Fischer said.
Illinois State used a six-run third inning to help propel itself to a six-inning win over Belmont (4-7). With one out, Kate Stake received a base on balls and went to second on a single down the left field line by Borba. Wright loaded the bases when she reached on an error by the shortstop. Pitcher Stacy Birk (6-0) then hit a sacrifice fly to centerfield to get the Redbirds on the board.
Lauren Bierwirth then hit a RBI double to left field to put the Birds up 2-0. Katie Guilbault plated a run on a single to third base. With runners on the corners, the hits just kept on coming as Williams had a RBI single to left. Prager followed with a RBI single to right field. The freshman had a couple firsts against Belmont. She tallied the first hit of her collegiate career and her first collegiate start (left field) in the win. On the double steal attempt, Prager was called out at second while Williams was able to score to put the Redbirds up 6-0.
Belmont scored in the third on a solo homer by Jessica McMillian. The Bruins added their second run the following inning as Erin Mullen reached on an error with two outs, and came around to score on Julie Castellis double down the left field line. However, Birk held the Bruins to just three hits, while striking out seven and allowing just one earned run.
Wright and Bierwirth each had two hits, including a double by each, while Birk had a double and three RBI.
Wright, who batted .538 in the tournament with three doubles, a home run and seven RBI, was a key part of Illinois States success in the Hilltopper Classic, according to Fischer.
Jen (Wright) had a big day, and just a great tournament, Fischer said. She had some key hits for us and almost had a grand slam yesterday, but the ball knocked off the wall and came back into the park.
Game two, the Redbirds second game against Western Kentucky (9-7) in as many days, was all about pitching and defense. Nicholson (8-4) held the Hilltopper offense in check, allowing just two hits in the shutout while striking out two. WKU only had two base runners in the game, while Nicholson faced just two more batters than the minimum.
The Birds used three runs in the first inning to establish a lead they would never relinquish. Tricia Gaither started the game with a walk and moved to second when Stake reached on a fielders choice. With one out, both runners advanced on a wild pitch with Gaither scoring on an error by the catcher. Then Wright came up with one of the Redbirds biggest hits of the day, a two-run blast over the fence in centerfield, to give Illinois State a 3-0 lead in the bottom of the first.
ISU added a run in the fourth and two in the sixth despite not tallying a hit in the final frame. In the sixth, Borba led off with a walk and was replaced on first by freshman Kelley Steers. Steers managed to steal second before Wright and Bierwirth walked to load the bases with one out. Guilbault then reached on an error allowing Steers to score, keeping the bases full. Sophomore Ashley Patterson then came on to pinch hit, recording the first RBI of her collegiate career on a sacrifice fly to right field for the games final score.
Borba, Wright and Randi Patton each had a hit in the win, while Wright and Guilbault each recorded two RBI.
At 3 p.m. Tuesday, the Redbirds will face intrastate rival Illinois in a doubleheader at Redbird Softball Complex.
