May 6, 2009
| INDIANA STATE (18-26, 10-15) VS. ILLINOIS STATE (24-25, 12-11) | EAST PEORIA, ILL. |
| Date |
Thursday, May 7, 2009 |
Location
|
East Peoria, Ill. | EastSide Centre |
Game Time
|
11 a.m. CDT |
| Radio |
 WJBC.com
|
| Webcast |
 MVC TV (FREE) |
Live Stats
|
BradleyBraves.com |
| Live Blog |
Redbird Softblog |
Game Info
|
 ISU Game Notes | MVC Weekly Notes
|
The Illinois State softball team will take the short trek to East Peoria, Ill., to take part in the 2009 State Farm MVC Championship this weekend. The No. 5 Redbirds face No. 8 Indiana State in the opening game of the tournament Thursday at 11 a.m. at the EastSide Centre. The winner will face No. 4 Drake at 4 p.m.
All games in the State Farm MVC Softball Tournament can be viewed live online on MVC TV. Registration is required, but is free of charge by clicking here.
The Indiana State Series
Illinois State has dominated the all-time series against Indiana State, owning a 62-11 record in the series. Illinois State has won 25 of the last 27 games in the series. Eight of the Redbirds’ 21 wins over the Sycamores since 2000 have come by way of a run-rule.
Illinois State head coach Melinda Fischer is 54-10 all-time against Indiana State, and she has guided her team to a 23-2 record against the Sycamores since The Valley went to three-game conference series in 2002. Illinois State won all three of its games last year against Indiana State.
Redbirds-Sycamores: 2009
Illinois State won the season series with Indiana State, 2-1. The Redbirds swept a doubleheader at Kneer Stadium, winning 5-0 and 3-1. The wins moved head coach Melinda Fischer past the 800 plateau for her career. The Sycamores topped the Redbirds, 4-1, four weeks later in Terre Haute.
Amber Smith threw a complete-game shutout, allowing four hits and striking out five, in the 5-0 win over Indiana State. Jordan Birch then struck out a career-high 13 batters in the second game of the doubleheader.
ISU batted only .164 against Indiana State this season and scored nine runs. Abby Olson batted .375 (3-8) with a home run and 2 RBI. Niki Stansell also homered against the Sycamores and drove in a team-high three runs.
Redbirds-Sycamores: MVC Tournament
Illinois State owns a 4-1 advantage in MVC Tournament games against Indiana State. ISU won the first meeting in 1983, 3-0, and the Sycamores’ first win came in 1989, 3-0. Since then, the Redbirds have won three-straight games by a combined score of 24-8. The last meeting came in 2000, an 8-1 ISU victory.
The Drake Series
Illinois State leads the all-time series with Drake, 51-18. and has won 12 of the last 15 games. Under head coach Melinda Fischer, ISU is 47-18 against the Bulldogs. The Redbirds are 17-5 against Drake since 2003, when former ISU assistant coach Rich Calvert (1987-92) took over the helm of the Bulldogs. Since the Valley went to a three-game series format in 2002, ISU has swept five of the eight series.
Redbirds-Bulldogs: 2009
Drake won the 2009 series against Illinois State, 2-1, April 10-11. Both Bulldog wins were by one run, including a 1-0 victory in nine innings. In the doubleheader opener, Amber Smith had a no-hitter through 6 2/3 innings, but ISU was unable to score a run in regulation and the game went to extra innings. A two-out fielding error by Abby Olson set up a game-winning single by Erin Bly in the ninth inning.
In the second game, Smith took matters into her own hands, putting the Redbirds up 1-0 with a sacrifice fly. Drake tied the game in the bottom of the inning, but ISU pulled back ahead with two runs in the top of the second inning on a throwing error and a single by Niki Stansell. Drake hit a solo homer in the bottom of the second and threatened to take the lead in the bottom of the sixth with runners on first and third. The Bulldogs muffed a sacrifice bunt play, popping the bunt into the air for an out, and the runner on third was doubled off.
Drake erased a six-run deficit in the rubber match to win, 7-6. The Redbirds put up six runs in the second inning, highlighted by a grand slam by Smith. Drake came right back with five runs in the third inning and then a run each in the fourth and fifth to complete the comeback victory and take the series.
Redbirds-Bulldogs: MVC Tournament
Illinois State is 2-2 all-time against Drake in the MVC Tournament. The two teams last met in the opening round in 2006, a 4-2 Redbird win. All of the other three previous tournament meetings came in 1993. ISU beat Drake, 6-2, in a preliminary round game, but the Bulldogs exacted their revenge in the championship, winning 4-0 and 2-1 to take the MVC title.
