May 6, 2011
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ILLINOIS STATE AT CREIGHTON | OMAHA, NEB.
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| Dates |
Saturday, May 7 - Sunday, May 8
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Location
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Omaha, Neb. (Creighton Sports Complex)
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Saturday
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at Creighton (DH) (12:00 p.m.)
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Sunday
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at Creighton (12:00 p.m.) |
| Radio |
GoRedbirds.com / WJBC.com (Dustin Hall | Play-by-Play) |
| AudioNow |
309-319-9425 (Listen to the broadcast FREE on your landline or cellular phone) |
NORMAL, Ill. - The Illinois State softball team will be looking to capture its first Missouri Valley Conference regular-season championship since 2006, when it travels to Omaha, Neb., for a three-game set with Creighton. The Redbirds (33-15, 19-4 MVC) and Bluejays (23-25, 11-10 MVC) are slated to play a doubleheader Saturday beginning at 12 p.m. and will wrap up the series Sunday with 12 p.m. contest.
ISU enters the final weekend of Valley play with a half game lead over second place Drake and maintained its spot at the top of the MVC standings by taking two of three from Southern Illinois last weekend. Illinois State can clinch the regular-season championship and secure the top seed in the State Farm MVC Tournament with a sweep of Creighton. The Redbirds will also claim the championship with two wins over the Bluejays and a Southern Illinois victory over Drake or by taking one from Creighton and having the Salukis win two over the Bulldogs.
Senior Karan Nelson enters the weekend with a league-best .417 batting average and is currently on a 25-game hitting streak. The Moline, Ill., native broke Illinois State's all-time doubles record with her 48th-career double last weekend against the Salukis and has started 216 career games, needing just two more to become ISU's leader in that category as well. Sophomore Elizabeth Kay leads the Redbirds with 14 home runs and 43 RBI and has tallied a hit in her last 13 ballgames. Four other Illinois State hitters boast batting averages over .300 and the Redbirds lead the MVC with a .303 team batting average, 65 home runs, 272 runs scored, 19 triples and a .533 team slugging percentage.
Juniors Jordan Birch and Megan Warner have split time in the circle for ISU, posting records of 15-4 and 14-6, respectively. Warner picked up both victories over SIU last weekend, tossing a complete-game, three-hitter in the nightcap of Saturday's doubleheader and earned the victory in relief in Sunday's rubber match, holding the Salukis scoreless over the final five innings. Birch has tossed a team-high 126.2 innings and leads the Redbirds with 137 strikeouts and four shutouts.
Creighton enters the weekend having won five of its last seven games and took two of three contests from Indiana State last weekend in Terre Haute, Ind. Ellen Homan leads the Bluejays with a .322 batting average and six doubles, while power hitting catcher Amy Baker leads the Valley with 16 home runs. Becca Changstrom leads the CU pitching staff, posting a record of 16-9 with a 2.12 ERA and seven shutouts. The freshman righty is limiting opposing hitters to a .172 average and has tallied 150 strikeouts in her 155.0 innings inside the circle.
The all-time series between the Redbirds and Bluejays is tied at 31-31-1, but Creighton took three of four contests from Illinois State last season, handing Illinois State their first loss in the 2010 State Farm MVC Tournament.
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