Feb. 22, 2007
NORMAL, Ill. -
After a record-setting weekend in Arizona, the Illinois State softball team continues its rigorous tournament schedule by participating in the NFCA Leadoff Classic in Columbus, Ga., Feb. 23-25. The Redbirds will face off with Coastal Carolina and No. 18 Georgia on Friday before going up against Lehigh and Virginia Tech on Saturday.
Held at the South Commons Stadium and Complex, the 20-team tournament is broken into four pools, with Illinois State competing in Pool 3, taking on CCU, Georgia, Lehigh and the Hokies in the tournament's first two days. Depending on each teams finish in their respective pool, the teams will be assigned to a championship bracket. Bracket play will begin on Sunday, Feb. 25 in single elimination format with game times of 9 a.m., 11 a.m. and 1 p.m.
Illinois State continues to receive national recognition in the ESPN.com/USA Softball collegiate Top-25 poll, garnering three votes. The `Birds had been featured in both national polls last week, but though they posted a 4-1 record at the Littlewood Classic, a 10-1 loss to No. 2 Arizona State may have fueled ISU's disappearance on the USA Today/NFCA list.
Redbird head coach Melinda Fischer is looking forward to the weekend of competition and believes her team needs to strive for consistency.
"We are still in a position where we need to build every weekend," said Fischer, whose team is 7-3 on the year, and has only lost to ranked opponents. "Taking the positives from last weekend, we need to work on the areas where we need improvement and work towards consistency. We saw a lot of improvement from week one to week two but after that loss to Arizona State, we were all disappointed we didn't compete better. This team needs to be able to compete at a higher level more consistently. That is what it will take to beat the teams we will face this weekend at the NFCA Leadoff Classic."
A member of the Big South Conference, Coastal Carolina was picked to finish second in the league's annual preseason poll. The Lady Chanticleers are off to a 1-7 start this season, picking up its first win on Feb. 18 over Elon, 8-0. CCU dropped the first seven games of the season, including extra inning losses to Ohio and Lipscomb. Finishing first in the Big South last season with a 10-2 conference mark, Costal Carolina went on to capture the conference tournament championship, advancing to the NCAA Regional in Athens, Ga.
The Lady Chanticleers and ISU met for the first time in 2006 at the Coastal Carolina Tournament, with Illinois State stealing the victory, 6-4, on Feb. 10 in Conway, S.C. 2006 senior Randi Patton, and current Redbirds Kaprice Williams and Tiffany Prager each had a pair of hits for
the `Birds who scattered nine hits against tournament host Coastal Carolina. Williams led the way with a pair of RBI.
Currently ranked No. 18 in the national polls, Georgia was picked to finish second in the Southeastern Conference (SEC) preseason coaches poll, behind current No. 1 Tennessee. The Bulldogs enter the Leadoff Classic with a 9-3 record and are looking to extend their four-game winning streak after a 5-1 showing at the fourth annual Georgia Softball Classic last weekend. GU hit at a .394 clip over the weekend, tallying three wins over Western Kentucky and dropping its only game of the tournament to Winthrop.
Georgia leads the all-times series against the `Birds with a 2-0 advantage. Illinois State and the Bulldogs met in 2002 and 2003, both in neutral locations. UG won 9-5 on Feb. 2, 2002 and with a No. 18 ranking in 2003, Georgia pulled a 1-0 victory from the Redbirds on Feb. 1.
Illinois State will be playing against Lehigh and Virginia Tech for the first time on Feb. 24. Members of the Patriot League, the Lehigh Mountain Hawks posted a 19-1 conference mark in 2006, claiming their eighth straight Patriot League regular-season championship. The 43-14 Mountain Hawks won the league's 2006 postseason tournament for the third straight year, advancing to the NCAA Tournament. The 43 victories established new school and conference records for total wins in a single season. Opening the 2007 slate this weekend at the NFCA Leadoff Classic, Lehigh's roster features seven returning position starters and one returning pitcher.
Members of the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC), the 2006 Hokies went 39-21 overall and 12-8 in league play. Virginia Tech finished third in the ACC regular-season race but advanced to the NCAA Regional in Knoxville, Tenn. In the post-season, VT defeated No. 19 Louisville in a 12-inning marathon, 1-0, before dropping consecutive games to No.6 Tennessee and Louisville to end the season. Off to a 7-2 start in 2007, Virginia Tech played in the Tiger Invitational last weekend, hosted by Auburn. The Hokies have defeated Tennessee Tech (3), Georgia State, Tulsa, Auburn and Notre Dame, and their only two losses have been to Alabama Birmingham.
