PEORIA, Ill. -- Bradley Softball will close out the regular-season schedule at home for the first time since 2013, hosting Indiana State for a crucial three-game series Saturday and Sunday at Petersen Hotels Field at the Louisville Slugger Sports Complex.
The Braves and Sycamores enter the final weekend of the 2017 regular-season slate tied in the Missouri Valley Conference standings and in the hunt for one of the final spots in next week's MVC Championship, which will be held May 11-13 in Normal, Ill.
Saturday's noon doubleheader will be Alumni Day, with Bradley Softball Alumni recognized during the day. The teams conclude the series Sunday with a single game at 11 a.m. with Bradley seniors
Jaelen Hull,
Kelly Kapp and
Caitlyn McCarron recognized prior to the final home game of their Bradley careers.
Saturday's doubleheader will be available on ESPN3 as part of The Valley On ESPN3 and can be viewed through WatchESPN.com and the WatchESPN app. In addition, BradleyBraves.com will provide links to live stats for all three contests. For ticket information visit - http://www.bubraves.com/sports/2017/3/27/bradley-softball-ticket-information.aspx?id=972
Bradley (20-30 overall, 6-17 MVC) has won the final home series of the year each of the past four seasons and also owns a four-game win streak on Senior Day. In fact, the Braves have won the final home contest of the year in six of eight seasons under head coach
Amy Hayes.
Kapp and McCarron both look to end the regular season on a high note. The duo's combined 136 hits are the most by a tandem in the MVC since 2009 and rank as the second most hits by a Bradley pair behind Natalie Quinn's and Tara Pearson's 142 combined hits in 1996.
McCarron is second in the MVC with a .419 batting average behind Kapp's league-leading .446 average. The combo could join Loyola's Erica Nagel and Brooke Wyderski from 2016 as the only pair of teammates to hit over .413 in a season in Valley history. McCarron's .662 slugging percentage is second in the MVC and second among Bradley season marks, while her 62 hits this spring is tied for the ninth-best season total in school history.
Kapp is two hits short of matching her school season hits record of 76 from 2015 and three from moving into 11th in league history in career hits. She can break the school season batting average mark of .409 with just one hit in her next 15 at bats and Kapp's .409 career batting average is currently six points higher than the MVC career mark of .403 currently held by Missouri State's Barb Gaines (1990-93).
Hull earned her team-best and career-high ninth victory of the year Friday at Loyola as she moved into the top 10 in school history with her 28th career victory. Bradley's career saves leader, she also ranks among the top 10 in school history in strikeouts (8th), appearances (6th) and innings (9th) in addition to holding school records for relief appearances in a season (25) and career (52).
The top eight teams in the final regular-season MVC standings will play in next week's Valley Championship in Normal, Ill.
