at    

Wichita State (9-15, 0-2) at Illinois St. (1010, 0-0)

Live Stats | Game Notes | Tickets | Live Video

---

Date: March 27-28
First Pitch: March 27- Noon/2pm ; March 28- Noon
Location: Normal, Ill.
Venue: Redbird Softball Complex
Series: ILS leads 55-16

 

• The Shockers travel to Normal, Ill., this weekend in search of their first Missouri Valley Conference wins as they take on Illinois State in a three-game series.

• Picked fifth in the MVC preseason poll, the Redbirds have yet to play a conference game after weather cancelled last weekend's series with Drake. ILS is led by preseason all-MVC third baseman Abby Olson's .414 batting average. The Redbirds are happy to welcome back All-American Kara Nelson after missing most of the 2009 season with a hand injury. Nelson is currently second on the team with a .365 average at the plate but leads the team in hits with 27. Sophomore Megan Warner leads the ILS pitching staff with a 4-4 record and 3.25 ERA. Warner has gone the distance four times this season, including one shutout.  

• The Shockers are in the midst of a five game losing streak with their last win coming against Rutgers in the home opener on March 15. Three of those five games, however, have come against nationally ranked Missouri and Oklahoma State. WSU has faced some tough pitching during the stretch and is hitting .148 in its last five games with Lindsie Mitts' .286 average leading the way.

• ILS leads the overall series with Wichita State, 55-16, including taking two of three from the Shockers last season in Wichita. The last time WSU took a series against ILS was in 2007 when the Shockers swept a doubleheader with the nationally ranked Redbirds, 5-1 and 4-3, before dropping the finale. WSU took a series from the Redbirds in Normal for the first, and only, time back in 1987.

• WSU's three-game set at Illinois State will kickoff a stretch where the Shockers will play 14 of 17 games on the road. The Shockers have just nine home games remaining this season compared to 19 road games.

• The Shockers' five game losing streak matches the longest losing streak in the Mike Perniciaro era.

• A pair of Shockers continue their ascent on the career stolen bases list at WSU. Senior Lindsie Mitts stole the 34th base of her career to move into fourth on the all-time list while sophomore Kersti Rowan moved to 10th with 25 steals in her career. Both players are perfect on the season, with Rowan going 10-for-10 and Mitts 8-for-8.

• Playing in her home state of Texas, Jamie Hull hit .385 in four games, March 5-7 in Lubbock. The junior hit two home runs, three doubles and drove in six runs. Hull started all four games at first base and had a perfect 1.000 fielding percentage with 16 putouts and two assists.

• A couple of WSU freshman notched their first home runs as Shockers last week. Freshmen Hayley Temple provided WSU's offense against No. 3 Missouri in a midweek matchup with a solo homer in game two of a doubleheader while fellow frosh Samme Shook hit a solo shot at home against UNI on Friday.

• The Shockers continue their mad dash on the basepaths in 2010. WSU stole seven bases in as many attempts in four games last week, bringing its season total to 32 steals in 34 attempts.

• Freshman Katie Armagost had a big weekend in Arlington, notching her first collegiate wins. The Wichita native came away with three of the four victories on the weekend, defeating Texas Southern, Prairie View A&M and UT-Arlington.

• Prior to this season, Heather Gerritse had four home runs in 119 career games. This season it took her just 12 games to double that total, thanks to a big weekend with three homers in Arlington.

• Sophomore Kersti Rowan is off to another fast start in 2010. Last season she stole her first 15 bases successfully and so far in 2010 she is 10-for-10 to rank third in the Valley in stolen bases.

• Kiersten Dixon is starting to heat up after a slow start. The junior outfielder recently had a six game hitting streak and drove in a season-high three runs against Boise State on March 5.

• The Shockers have lost five games due to weather this season, equalling the number of games lost in all of the 2009 season.