Redbirds Head to Arizona for Littlewood Classic

Feb. 21, 2008

After two-straight weeks of games in Florida, the Illinois State softball team (4-6) will make its first trek outside of the Sunshine State this weekend when it plays five games over three days (Friday-Sunday) at the Littlewood Classic in Tempe, Ariz. The Redbirds, who are coming off a dominant 8-1 victory over Florida International Sunday (Feb. 17) at the Schutt Sports Invitational in Miami, will face off against their toughest tournament field yet, as they take on perennial national power Arizona State, as well as past NCAA Tournament participant Iowa.

The Redbirds' Littlewood Classic schedule begins Friday, when ISU takes on Radford (2 p.m. CST) and 2007 Women's College World Series (WCWS) participant No. 2/4 Arizona State (8:30 p.m. CST). On Saturday, the Redbirds will face Iowa at 2 p.m. CST and Miami (Ohio) at 8:30 p.m. CST, before they wrap up their time in Tempe with a noon CST matchup Sunday against Buffalo.

"We came off a good game against Florida International last Sunday (Feb. 17), so we would like to build off that performance," Illinois State head softball coach Melinda Fischer said. "That win (8-1) was indicative of what Illinois State softball can do. At this tournament, there are three opponents that we have not played in a while (Miami [Ohio], Buffalo and Radford), so it's nice to face some new opponents, and we certainly know about the reputation of the programs at Iowa and Arizona State."

Illinois State's offense is led by the duo of senior second baseman Tiffany Prager and junior first baseman/pitcher Amber Smith. Prager has had a fast start to her final season with the Redbirds, as the Bloomington, Ill., native is batting a team-best .469 (15-for-32) with four doubles, five RBI and seven runs scored. Smith, who has taken on dual roles as both ISU's No. 1 pitcher and one of its starting first basemen, leads the team in RBI with seven, while hitting at a .433 (13-for-30) clip through 10 games with one home run.

After starting the season with 37 walks in 36.1 innings pitched in its first five games (7.4 walks/game), the Illinois State pitching staff, led by Smith's 2-4 (3.12 ERA) record and Amy Mitchell's 2-1 (5.25 ERA) mark, have improved its strikeout-to-walk ratio dramatically. Redbird pitchers allowed just nine walks over five games (1.8 walks/game) at last weekend's Schutt Sports Invitational in Miami, while it also bumped its strikeout-to-walk ratio up from 0.84 after the first five games of the season to 0.93 through 10 games.

The Redbirds will be making their fourth-straight trip to the Littlewood Classic, where they own an 8-8 all-time record in the tournament. Illinois State has played in the State of Arizona for 18-straight years, dating back to 1990. Illinois State is a combined 28-53 all-time against this year's Littlewood Classic field. The Redbirds lead just one of the series with a 4-0 mark all-time against Miami (Ohio), while Iowa holds a 29-16 advantage in the all-time series, and Arizona State owns a commanding 24-1 lead in the all-time series against ISU. Illinois State has never played against Radford.

The Redbirds' first tournament opponent, Radford (5-1), was 44-27 in 2007. The Highlanders return seven starters from their 2007 squad, while their entire pitching staff has remained intact.

Illinois State will play its third ranked opponent of the season Friday when it takes on No. 2/4 Arizona State. The Sundevils are dominating opponents so far this season, as they are hitting .389 (109-for-280) as a team and have hit 16 home runs in 11 games (1.45 home runs/game), with 84 RBI.

Dating back to the 1994 season, Illinois State is 36-95 in games played against nationally-ranked opponents. The Redbirds and Sundevils last met Feb. 16, 2007, when then-No. 2 ASU beat Illinois State, 10-1, in five innings.

Despite returning eight of its nine starters from last season, Iowa's offense has been led early on by a freshman, as Chelsey Carmody is hitting .571 (8-for-14) with three runs scored, three doubles and a .786 slugging percentage.

Illinois State will finish its time in Tempe, Ariz., with games against Miami (Ohio) and Buffalo. Miami was 26-35-1 last season with a 2.59 team batting average. The Redbirds and RedHawks last met March 13, 1995, when ISU defeated Miami, 10-0, in six innings. Buffalo has yet to play a game this season after finishing 2007 with a 3-45 record. The Bulls are currently on a 14-game losing streak, dating back to last season, and have not won since April 13. 2007.