Sept. 23, 2007
NORMAL, Ill. -
A steal of home by former Illinois State softball all-American Heather Stella was the deciding factor in the Early `Birds taking a 5-1 victory over the current crop of Illinois State softball players at the team's annual alumni game Sunday afternoon at Redbird Softball Complex.
The alumni team's roster featured 14 former Redbird softball players, including eight all-Americans, three Missouri Valley Conference Rookies of the Year (Stella, Stacy Birk and Priscilla Welch-Delaere), one former ISU Female Athlete of the Year (Stella) and one former ISU Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year (Kate Stake). At the helm for the Early `Birds was Stella, a 1998 and 1999 National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) All-American.
Illinois State head coach Melinda Fischer thought the high level of competition that the alumni team brought to the game was the key to the Early `Birds' victory.
"I give all the credit to the alumni team in earning the victory (Sunday)," said Fischer. "Our alumni team schooled us on the fundamentals. They showed pure guts, desire and intestinal fortitude, and that's what we (the Redbirds) lacked."
The game saw pitching on the alumni team from two of the top pitchers in Illinois State softball history, Katie Newman and Stacy Birk. Newman was a member of two-straight ISU Missouri Valley Conference regular-season championship teams (2001 and 2002). A 2007 graduate of the Redbird softball program, Birk holds the career wins record of 77 victories in the circle, while also owning the lowest all-time career opponents' batting average mark at .225.
A pair of errors cost the Early `Birds in the bottom of the second inning, as Illinois State got to the alumni squad for the first run of the game. After the Redbirds had two-straight groundouts to shortstop, catcher Jennifer Brown walked. She advanced to second base when third baseman Casey Gorrell reached base on the Early `Birds' first error of the season, a botched ground ball by second baseman, Amy Ehret. One batter later, with left fielder Brittany McElmury at the plate, a throwing error by Early `Birds catcher Cutie Taylor on a Redbird double steal attempt allowed Brown to plate ISU's first run of the game and take the early 1-0 lead.
The Early `Birds threatened in top of the fourth inning thanks to two well-placed bunts. After 2004 Easton Third-Team All-American Emily Krueger led off the inning with a single up the left side of the diamond, Priscilla Welch-Delaere bunted for a hit, and then Taylor sacrificed both runners over with a bunt back to the Redbirds' first baseman, Diciembre Vaca. The Early `Birds were unable to capitalize on the scoring opportunity, however, as Redbird pitcher Rachel Smith induced a groundout and a pop-up to Vaca at first base to end the Early `Bird threat.
Errors once again played a part in a team scoring in the top of the fifth inning, as the Early `Birds got to ISU for two runs in the frame. April Schermann led off the inning with a double into the left-center field gap. With Stella at the plate, Schermann stole second and scored when Brown's throw was misplayed by Gorrell at third base and went into left field. The Early `Birds plated their second run of the inning when Stella stole home on a double steal attempt to give the Early `Birds a 2-1 advantage over ISU.
The Early `Birds broke the game open in the top of the eighth, scoring three runs off the Redbirds. With Welch-Delaere on at first base after reaching on an error by shortstop Kaprice Williams, Taylor came to the plate and singled into right field, advancing Welch-Delaere to second. Birk then bunted for a hit, loading the bases for the Early `Birds with two outs. A double by Kelsey Warning into the left-center field gap drove in all three base runners, and gave the Early `Birds all the runs they needed in their 5-1 win.
Illinois State's fall season will come to a close Sunday, Oct. 7, when the Redbirds hold their annual "Parents and Friends Game" at Redbird Softball Complex. The game is scheduled to start at 1 p.m.
