Redbirds to Open Home Slate Against Iowa on Tuesday

ON DECK

The Illinois State softball team opens its home slate with a single contest against the Iowa Hawkeyes at noon CT on Tuesday at Marian Kneer Stadium. The game will be broadcast live on ESPN+. All Redbird softball regular-season home games are free and open to the public.

LAST TIME OUT

The Redbirds opened MVC play last weekend and went 2-1 against Evansville, with all three games being tight one-run contests. The Redbirds swept Friday's doubleheader 3-2 and 6-5 in nine innings before falling 8-7 in game three on Saturday. Friday's series-opening victory marked Coach Kramos' first-career win in an MVC opener.

TWO DUBS ONE DAY

Paige McLeod added two wins to her record during the Redbirds' doubleheader with Evansville last Friday. In game one, McLeod started in the circle and gave up two earned runs while striking out four batters in six innings. In the second contest, which ended in nine innings, McLeod pitched the final four frames and held the Purple Aces to one earned run to earn her seventh victory of the season and the Redbirds' second extra inning win this year.

MESHNICK MASHES

Hannah Meshnick made the most of her four at-bats over the weekend, going 3-for-4 with a triple, two home runs, six RBIs and three runs scored. The junior is currently hitting .444 in 16 games played.

WORKIN' WALKS

Freshman Ava Boyer worked four base on balls against Evansville on March 7, marking the first four-walk game for a Redbird since Jayden Standish versus Southern Illinois on May 6, 2023. She is second on the team with 10 walks this season.

ASSIST-KINSON

Bella Atkinson has been busy at third base, leading the conference and ranking 19th in the nation with 60 total assists this season. The senior also ranks second in the NCAA with 3.16 assists per game, trailing only Cameron Kaufman of Bowling Green (3.55).

For updates on Illinois State Softball, follow the Redbirds on Twitter (@RedbirdsSB), Instagram (@redbirdsoftball) and Facebook (Illinois State Redbird Softball). 

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