July 30, 2008
NORMAL, Ill. -
Two-and-a-half months removed from its spring season, the Illinois State softball team released its fall tournament schedule Wednesday. The campaign, which does not count toward the team's overall spring record, comprises a total of eight games and scrimmages.
"This is the first year that we are under the new rules for spring counting of games," said Illinois State head softball coach Melinda Fischer. "We will be allowed to play only 56 games during the spring, instead of 56 dates, so we are limited to eight games in the fall."
Effective Aug. 1, the NCAA will institute a bylaw that limits a team's total number of contests to 56 (games and scrimmages) during the season in which the NCAA Championship is conducted (spring), with an additional eight games or scrimmages allowed during a fall tournament season. Previously, teams were allowed to play during 56 dates throughout the fall and spring.
Illinois State will begin its fall tournament season Sunday, Sept. 14, when it plays host to the second annual Redbird Round Robin at the recently renamed Marian Kneer Softball Stadium (formerly known as the Redbird Softball Complex). The tournament will feature Saint Xavier (Ill.), an NAIA school, along with Illinois Central College (ICC) of the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA). ISU will take on Saint Xavier at noon, followed by a 5 p.m. contest against ICC.
The next weekend (Sept. 20-21) will feature a new tournament to ISU's fall schedule, as the inaugural Illinois Collegiate Softball Championship will be held at Champion Fields in Normal, Ill. The 12-team tournament, which features 11 of the 12 NCAA Division I softball teams in the state of Illinois, will kick off Saturday, Sept. 20 with pool play, followed by bracket play Sunday, Sept. 22 to decide the tournament's champion.
Illinois State's guaranteed games in the Illinois Collegiate Softball Championship include contests against Northern Illinois (noon Sept. 20) and Illinois-Chicago (5 p.m. Sept. 20).
Following two-straight weekends of tough competition, the Redbirds will take a weekend to reconnect with their softball roots, as they are slated to play in their annual Alumni Game at 1 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 28. The game will pit the current Redbirds against ISU players from years past.
Illinois State will resume the competitive portion of its fall tournament schedule during the weekend of Oct. 4-5, as it travels to Evanston, Ill., to take on Big Ten foe Northwestern (Oct. 4). The Redbirds will conclude their fall season the next day (Oct. 5), when they play in their annual Parents/Friends Game at Marian Kneer Softball Stadium.
"Our goal for our fall tournament season is to prepare the team for spring competition," said Fischer. "We are very excited about the new tournament. Having 11 of the 12 NCAA Division I softball teams in the state of Illinois playing in the Illinois Collegiate Softball Championship will make for a great tournament.
"We always try to play both Saint Xavier and Illinois Central College early in our fall season, and then to conclude the fall campaign against Northwestern, which is one of the best teams in the nation, is going to be a great challenge for us."
Illinois State is coming off a 28-20 regular-season finish (17-7 Missouri Valley Conference). The Redbirds went 10-1 during their fall 2007 tournament season.
