DES MOINES, Iowa – With the Redbirds' pair of solid team wins over Drake, head coach Melinda Fischer tallied her 1,000th win at Illinois State on Friday night in Des Moines, Iowa.
With more than 1,000 career wins under her belt, Fischer is the 20th coach in NCAA Softball history to earn 1,000 wins at one school. In her 32nd season at Illinois State, she is also the 10th Division I coach reach this mark.
"I had no idea, but, honestly, this is a special one," Fischer said. "The opportunity to be at Illinois State this long and to work with all the people who have produced those wins has been an amazing journey. It's all in one place and that, to me, is really special."
Despite a four-hour weather delay, the Redbirds gave up a mere three runs in the double header and clinched the pair of wins to maintain sole possession of first place in the Missouri Valley with an 11-4 record, 21-17 overall. The Bulldogs dip to 3-11 in league play and 20-21 on the season.
"We played two really good ball games," Fischer said. "We handled the rain delay exceptionally well. We got ahead quickly in game one to give us momentum. Sarah Finck did a great job in the circle to extend our innings. In game two, we had a lot of early opportunities. We had some hard hit balls, but right at people. Finally, Alyssa Wiebel came up with huge home run to win it."
In the first game, Jordan de los Reyes led the Redbirds' offense with three RBIs with Wiebel and Riley Strandgard knocking in two more apiece. The Allison Spence – de los Reyes – Strandgard trio each logged multi-hit games with two hits each.
The Redbirds closed out the night with a thrilling seventh inning two-run home run by Wiebel, securing the 3-1 win. Strandgard drove in the third RBI on her second multi-hit game of the day. Caitlyn Daly and Spence also had two hits apiece in game two's victory.
"Everyone is stepping up and playing to get the outs," Fischer said. "We've been able to make some key defensive plays. Today, we brought a total body of work for two complete ball games. That's what we need to do to win in this conference."
Game One: W, 7-2
The Redbirds got off to a hot start with each of the first six batters reaching first on four singles. De los Reyes drove in the first of three runs. Wiebel tripled the score with a two-run single down the left line. The Bulldogs quickly made a pitching change that resulted in a walk and three outs to close out the first.
After three scoreless innings, Strandgard sent her fifth gone-ball of the year to center, upping the Redbirds lead to five runs. The Bulldogs quickly nullified the lead with a two-out two-RBI single up the middle.
Illinois State continued to attack into the seventh inning, tacking on two runs on four hits. After Shannon Felde laced her second hit of the game up the middle, de los Reyes cruched her 46th career home run to center, plating two runs. Spence and Strandgard doubled and singled, respectively, in the seventh but the runs were finalized at seven.
Finck tossed a three-hit gem, giving up a mere two runs in the contest for her 16th complete game, improving her record to 13-8. The Bulldogs' starter, Kailee Smith, took the loss, facing five batters before Knoche Aryka tossed 7.0 innings in relief. Â
Game Two: W, 3-1
The Redbirds picked up where they left off, plating on run on two hits in the first inning. Felde singled through the left side before a pair of hit-by-pitches loaded the bases. Strandgard laced a two-out RBI-single to left field, giving Illinois State an early one-run lead.
Drake threatened in the bottom of the first with runners in scoring position, but Daly – de los Reyes putout at the plate kept the home team off the board.
After four scoreless innings, the Bulldogs knotted the game in the fifth at one run on three consecutive hits to open the fifth inning.
In the sixth, Daly responded for the Redbirds with her second hit of the game through the left side. However, the Redbirds could not cross the plate.
Tied going into the seventh inning, Spence doubled to right-center setting the stage for Wiebel's sixth home run of the season, giving the Redbirds a 3-1 lead.
The Bulldogs made contact in the final inning, but the Redbirds' perfect fielding clinched the win.
Starter Ali Domkuski tossed 4.0 innings, giving up one run to earn the no decision. Finck threw the final 3.0 innings to earn her second win of the day.
Illinois State and Drake wrap up the series on Saturday with first pitch scheduled for 1 p.m. at Ron Buel Field in Des Moines, Iowa. The Redbirds return home on Wednesday, April 19 to Pack the Park versus Bradley.
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