NORMAL, Ill. – The Illinois State softball team (21-5, 7-1) will return to Missouri Valley Conference action this weekend, as preseason favorite Southern Illinois (28-7, 10-4 MVC) comes to town. This will be the first meeting between the two programs since the 2018 season, due to a weather cancellation during the 2019 season and the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.
Fans can follow the three-game series, that begins with a doubleheader at 12 p.m. on Saturday, via live stats, ESPN3 or WZND Radio. At this time, attendance is limited to player pass list only and not open to the general public.
PAYING OFF AT THE PLATE
Sophomore Brandi LaFountaine turned in a career performance against the Blue Demons on Tuesday night, as the Redbirds powered past DePaul, 7-2, in their final nonconference game of the season. After Spenser Strandgard led off the sixth inning with a home run, LaFountaine followed suit with a long ball of her own, turning in her first career hit. The Redbirds now have 16 on the year with Mack Leonard (5) leading the way.
JUST ANOTHER DAY
Morgan Day turned in her seventh double-digit performance of the season on Tuesday night, while grabbing her 12th win with a 7-2 victory over DePaul. The right-handed hurler has turned in 168 strikeouts on the year - the most in the Valley and seventh-most in NCAA Division I - and holds a 1.77 ERA in 106.2 innings pitched.
POWERFUL PAIR
The junior tandem of Mack Leonard and Emme Olson has been a threat all season, as the duo leads the team in batting average, RBIs, doubles and total bases. Leonard has been struck out just three times in the last 10 games and once in the last five, while Olson hasn't been struck out in the last seven outings for the Redbirds. Both utility players are currently riding a team-best 11-game reached base streak heading into this weekend's series against the Salukis.
For updates on Illinois State Softball, follow the Redbirds on Twitter (@RedbirdsSB) and Instagram (@redbirdsoftball). Game dates, times, opponents and locations are all subject to change.
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