 "It is great to get to 900 wins, but it is even more important that
we won two games to open conference play," Fischer said. "Getting to
900 wins is not an individual achievement. This was a team effort,
and there are a lot of people that went into making all of these
wins possible."The Redbird offense pounded out 23 hits in the two
wins over the Bears, with four Illinois State players recording at
least three hits. Sophomore Laura Canopy paced ISU, going 5 for 6
with a pair of RBIs; senior Liz Andrews finished 4 for 8 with a pair
of doubles and two RBIs; and junior Jhavon Hamilton had a four-hit
evening, with two extra-base hits, including her second grand slam
of the season.
Senior Jordan Birch turned in an impressive outing in the circle,
holding MSU to just two hits in a complete-game shutout win in the
first game. Birch struck out five Missouri State hitters without
issuing a walk, to improve to 8-7 on the year.
After stranding three runners in scoring position through the
first two innings in the opener, ISU got on the board with a pair of
runs in the top of the third. Junior Lauren Kellar reached on a
one-out error by MSU pitcher Natalie Rose and scored on a double by
Andrews later in the frame. Canopy capped the inning with an RBI
single to right that put ISU up 2-0.
The Redbirds added an insurance run in the fourth, when Hamilton
drove in freshman Lindsey Greene, who led off the inning with her
first career double.
Rebecca McPherson led off the bottom of the fifth with a single
for Missouri State, but Birch was able to retire the next nine Bears
to seal the victory. Junior Elizabeth Kay added the final run for
ISU with a solo home run to left in the seventh, her fourth of the
season, to make the final score 4-0.
The Illinois State offense struck early and often in the
nightcap, scoring three runs on four hits in the bottom of the first
to take an early 3-0 advantage. After a groundout by Hamilton to
lead off the game, Kellar, Kay, Andrews and Canopy connected for
four straight singles to provide the first two runs. Andrews was
able to cross the plate for the third after an errant throw by the
Missouri State catcher on Canopy's stolen base.
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The Bears responded with four consecutive hits of their own to
score a pair of runs in the bottom of the second and trim the margin
to 3-2. McPherson started the rally with a one-out single and later
scored on a single by Erin Duewel. MSU starter Chelsea Jones helped
her own cause with an RBI double to left center to score Alissa
Trickey, who pinch ran for Duewel.
The Redbirds answered with a six-run third inning to push their
lead to 9-2. Andrews scored the first run on a Missouri State error,
and freshman Kolby Hoffman drove in the second with an RBI single to
left. Hamilton followed by belting a grand slam over the wall in
right to highlight the inning.
MSU threatened in the bottom of the third, getting a pair of
runners in scoring position, but ISU starter Megan Warner was able
to get a pair of groundouts to end the inning. Warner limited the
Bears to just two hits in the final two innings to secure Fischer's
historic win.
Redshirt sophomore Nichelle Harrison drove in a run with an
infield single in the fourth to give Illinois State an eight-run
advantage, and Kay drove in Kellar with a sacrifice fly in the fifth
to cap the scoring and make the final tally 11-2.
Warner improved to 6-4 on the season with the victory inside the
circle, allowing a pair of runs on eight hits with no strikeouts or
walks.
The Redbirds looked to complete the sweep of the Bears on
Saturday afternoon, when the first pitch was slated for noon.
[Text from file received from
Illinois State]
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