PEORIA, Ill. -- After completing the longest home stand since 2007, the Bradley softball team will travel outside the state of Illinois for the first time in over a month for a three-game series at Northern Iowa Saturday and Sunday. The Braves and Panthers will play a noon doubleheader Saturday in Cedar Falls, Iowa, and wrap up the series Sunday with a single game at noon.
Bradley had a six-game win streak, the longest since 2009, and posted a 7-3 record during the recently completed 10-game home stand which started March 21 against Missouri State and wrapped up Sunday against Indiana State. The Braves have played 14 consecutive games in the state of Illinois and will venture outside the Land of Lincoln for the first time since playing in the UCF Knights Invitational in Orlando, Fla., March 6-8.
The weekend series at Northern Iowa kicks off a five-game road swing for the Braves, who will also play a doubleheader at Illinois State next Wednesday. BradleyBraves.com will provide links to live stats for all three games of the series against UNI.
The Braves enter the weekend alone in sixth in the Missouri Valley Conference standings at 6-6 after taking two of three games from Indiana State last weekend to move ahead of the Sycamores. Northern Iowa has a one-and-a-half game lead on Bradley heading into Saturday's doubleheader at 7-4 and the Panthers are currently fourth in the league standings.
The seven home wins this season are the most for Bradley since winning 16 home contests at three different venues during the 2009 season. During the 10-game home stand the Braves owned a .344 team batting average with 14 doubles, two triples, 11 homers and 33 walks. In addition to the offensive production, Bradley pitchers combed for a 2.33 ERA and held foes to a .267 batting average.
Senior Shannon King (San Jose, Calif./Archbishop Mitty) owns a career-best seven game hit streak and has driven in multiple runs in five of the last six games. During her current seven-game run, King owns a .500 average with eight runs, two doubles, one triple, two home runs and 12 RBI. She played in the 198th game of her career Sunday against Indiana State and should become the ninth player in program history to appear in 200 career games this weekend.
Freshman Erika Hansen (Fillmore, Calif./Moorpark) was named MVC Player and Newcomer of the Week Monday after batting .727 (8-for-11) with six runs, eight RBI, two doubles and two home runs in four games last week. Hansen has a conference-leading 15 doubles, which is tied for the fourth best season total in school history, and her league-best 27 walks is tied for the second most in Bradley history behind Bailiegh Basham's 2012 school record 36 base on balls.
Sophomore Kelly Kapp (Freeburg, Ill./Gibault Catholic) has had hits in each of the four games since she had a 16-game hit streak snapped back on March 29. Currently second in the MVC with 50 hits, Kapp has a league-best 16 stolen bases which is more than one conference rival has this year. She needs five hits and one stolen base to become the first Brave since Laura Harms in 2004 with 55 hits and 17 or more steals. Kapp is the sixth individual in school history with 50 hits and 15 or more steals in a season.
Following the weekend trip to Cedar Falls, Iowa, Bradley will play a 3 p.m. doubleheader at I-74 rival Illinois State Wednesday, April 15 in Normal, Ill.
