April 24, 2008
NORMAL, Ill. -
After taking a break from Missouri Valley Conference action last weekend, the Illinois State baseball team (18-19) will look to move up in the league standings when the Redbirds travel to Springfield, Mo., for a three-game set against Missouri State. The series will open up Friday at 7:05 p.m. at Hammons Field.
The Redbirds, who head into the weekend with a 3-9 record in Valley play, split their two midweek games earlier this week. Illinois State dropped a 10-4 decision to Illinois Tuesday, while ISU rallied to score seven runs in the ninth to post a 14-10 victory over Northern Illinois Wednesday. The `Birds will face a Missouri State team that currently leads the league in batting with a .322 average through 40 games.
Head coach Jim Brownlee feels that the Redbird s' pitching will face a challenge, however, believes the `Birds have chance with their southpaw-heavy rotation.
"I'm anxious to see how our pitchers perform against their hitters this weekend. It's going to be a good test," said Brownlee. "But I like our matchup, because they have struggled against left-handed pitching. If we can stay locked in at the plate, we should be able to score some runs. It's definitely going to be an interesting series, as well as an important series. When we are locked in, we are a pretty good team. We showed some grit yesterday, and hopefully that will carry over into the weekend. It will be important to play well Friday, because when Copeland is on the mound we always have a chance to win."
The Redbirds will send sophomore Ryan Copeland to the mound in Friday's opener. Copeland is 4-4 with a team-best 2.57 earned-run average in nine starts. Senior Tyler Cox (4-1) will also look for his fifth win of 2008, as the fellow left-hander has posted a 3.98 ERA in five starts on the hill. Freshman Ben Hays will make his first-career Valley start in the finale Sunday. Hays is 1-1 with a 5.51 ERA in 13 appearances (three starts).
Fans can follow each game with live statistics, available on GoRedbirds.com. All three games this weekend will also be carried live on the radio by WJBC AM 1230 on the web at www.wjbc2.com. A "Listen" link can also be found on the main page schedule at GoRedbirds.com.
