NORMAL, Ill. – Illinois State softball is back on the road this week as the Redbirds travel to Bowling Green, Ky. to partake in the Hilltopper Spring Fling hosted by Western Kentucky on Feb. 24-26.
The four-team tournament field consists of Illinois State, Western Kentucky, Central Michigan and Jacksonville State. The Redbirds begin play against Jacksonville State on Friday, Feb. 24 at 12:30 p.m. followed by a contest versus the host, WKU, at 5:30 p.m. Another pair of games is set for Saturday, Feb. 25 with the first game against Jacksonville State at 10 a.m. and the second versus Central Michigan at 5:30 p.m. Illinois State closes out the tournament with a second game against Western Kentucky at 12:30 p.m. before returning home.
Live stats will be available for all games during the Hilltopper Spring Fling and any games played against Western Kentucky will be broadcast on Hilltopper Sports Satellite Network (HSSN) on Facebook Live. Links are available on the Redbird Softball schedule page.
TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE
Friday, Feb. 24 – Illinois State vs. Jacksonville State – 12:30 p.m. CT
Friday, Feb. 24 – Illinois State at Western Kentucky – 5:30 p.m. CT
Saturday, Feb. 25 – Illinois State vs. Jacksonville State – 10 a.m. CT
Saturday, Feb. 25 – Illinois State vs. Central Michigan – 5:30 p.m. CT
Sunday, Feb. 26 – Illinois State at Western Kentucky – 12:30 p.m. CT
SCOUTING THE OPPONENTS
The Jacksonville State Gamecocks are currently 6-3 overall after two weekends of play. In 2022, the Gamecocks were 31-24 overall while posting a 13-11 conference record in the ASUN. JSU ended in a three-way tie for ninth in the conference in the regular season and lost to North Alabama and Kennesaw State in the ASUN tournament to end the season.
Western Kentucky holds a 5-5 record and is 4-1 in its last five games heading into its first home games of the season this weekend. In 2022, the Hilltoppers were 38-13 overall with a 17-7 conference record. WKU ended first in the East division and tied for second overall in the conference after the regular season. WKU lost to North Texas in the championship game of the conference tournament to end the Hilltoppers' 2022 season.
Central Michigan's 2023 record currently stands at 2-2 overall after its opening weekend at a tournament hosted by No. 3 Florida on Feb. 17-19. In 2022, the Chippewas were barely above .500, ending the season at 27-26 overall and 17-11 in the Mid-American Conference. CMU was third in the conference after the regular season, but lost to Miami (OH) and Bowling Green in the MAC tournament to end its 2022 campaign.
SERIES HISTORY
Illinois State and Jacksonville State have met one time in program history on March 11, 2016, at the Louisville Softball Classic in Louisville, Ky. The Redbirds bested the Gamecocks 8-7 in a 10-inning game.Â
The Redbirds and Hilltoppers will meet for the 12th time in program history with WKU leading the series 6-5. The Hilltoppers have won the last 4 of 5 games played between these two programs.Â
Illinois State and Central Michigan have met eight times in program history. The series is tied at 4-4 which means this is the rubber match in the all-time series between the Chippewas and Redbirds. The last time ISU won was on Feb. 6, 2012, when CMU fell 11-3 in six innings to the Redbirds.Â
NEWS & NOTES
Newcomer of the Week Honors:Â True freshman Hannah Meshnick was named the Missouri Valley Conference's Newcomer of the Week on Feb. 21 for her performance at the Littlewood Classic in Arizona. Despite a rough outing against No. 22/RV Arizona State, Meshnick had a solid weekend for the Redbirds. She made four appearances with two starts in the circle. Her two starts were both complete game efforts, the first being the first of her career and a no-hitter against Weber State. In her second start, she tossed 8.0 complete innings against BYU in an extra-innings loss.
Freshman firing in the circle:Â True freshman Hannah Meshnick threw a no-hitter against Weber State in her first career start for the Redbirds. Illinois State won 9-0 in six innings as Meshnick went the distance and only faced the minimum (18 batters) as her two walks issued were both erased by double plays. She started again the next day against BYU and tossed 8.0 innings in a 2-1 extra-innings loss. She did not give up a run in her first 11.0 IP and only one of the two runs the Cougars scored was earned. Through her first 18.0 IP, Meshnick only allowed two runs (only one earned), five hits (only one XBH), and collected nine strikeouts.Â
On-base Olson:Â Fifth-year senior Emme Olson continues to lead the Redbird offense in many categories. She currently holds a reached base safely streak of 11 games. She has reached base safely in all nine contests in 2023, but her streak dates back to the final two games of the 2022 season. Olson also holds a hit streak of seven games that includes two doubles that have moved her up to third in program history in career doubles (42).
For updates on Illinois State Softball, follow the Redbirds on Twitter (@RedbirdsSB), Instagram (@redbirdsoftball), and Facebook (Illinois State Redbird Softball).
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