March 26, 2010
NORMAL, Ill. – After poor weather conditions caused the cancellation of the last four games, the Illinois State softball team will open its 2010 Missouri Valley Conference schedule with a three-game series against Wichita State at the Marian Kneer Softball Stadium in Normal, Ill., Saturday and Sunday. The series will also open the home season for the Redbirds, with the first pitch slated for noon Saturday.
Fans are encouraged to wear white to Saturday’s doubleheader as part of a “White Out” promotion, while kids will be able to run the bases after the second game as part of a Reggie’s Kids Club Day. For Sunday, fans are encouraged to wear red. There will also be an autograph session at the end of the game.
Live stats for each game of the Illinois State-Wichita State series will be available on GoRedbirds.com.
Wichita State (9-15) has lost its last five games heading into this weekend’s three-game series. The Shockers are led by Heather Gerriste, who is batting a .368 and leads the team with 21 hits. Gerriste also leads the team in home runs (4), RBI (15) and total bases (34).
Illinois State (10-10) has dominated the all-time series against Wichita State, owning a 55-16 advantage over the Shockers. Last season, ISU fell to the Shockers, 1-0, in the first game of the series, but defeated WSU, 4-0 and 8-5, in the final two games of the series at Wichita, Kan.
At the plate, Illinois State is led by Abby Olson, who leads the team with a .414 batting average, a .897 slugging percentage and eight home runs in 58 at bats. Another strong presence at the plate is junior second baseman Kara Nelson, whose 27 hits lead all ISU batters.
The Redbirds' pitching staff owns a combined 4.91 ERA entering this weekend's series. ISU is holding opposing batters to a .275 batting average, while Redbird pitchers average 5.25 strikeouts-per-game.
GoRedbirds.com: Your online source for Illinois State Athletics, tickets, TRC gifts, multimedia, Redbird merchandise, photos and more.
