Softball Hosts Evansville In Final Home Series

Duane Zehr

Softball 5/3/2018 11:00:00 AM

PEORIA, Ill. -- Bradley Softball will close out the regular-season schedule at home for the second consecutive year, hosting Evansville in a weekend series at Petersen Hotels Field at the Louisville Slugger Sports Complex as the team's battle for one of the final spots in next week's Missouri Valley Conference Tournament

The Braves (18-28 overall, 7-14 MVC) enter the weekend two games up in the loss column over the Purple Aces (14-32 overall, 7-16 MVC) and just three wins separate third from 10th place in the league standings heading into the final weekend of the regular season.

The series begins with a noon doubleheader Saturday and wraps up Sunday with a single game at 11 a.m. Seniors Elizabeth Leonard and Maria Schroeder will be recognized prior to Sunday's series finale. Saturday will be Alumni Day with Bradley Softball alumni recognized before first pitch of the doubleheader.

All three games of the weekend series will be available on 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 the entire series.

Bradley owns a 37-34 lead in the all-time series with the Purple Aces after winning two of three games at Evansville last season. The Braves are 10-2 in the last 12 games in the series and head coach Amy Hayes is 16-9 as head coach at BU against her alma mater. Bradley owns a 14-12 advantage in the series in games played in Peoria, which includes a 10-7 edge since 2004.

The Braves will finish the schedule at home for the second consecutive year, but have closed the regular-season at home in just one of the previous four seasons. Bradley has won the final home game of the season in five consecutive seasons and seven of head coach Amy Hayes' nine years on The Hilltop. The Braves have never faced Evansville in the final home series of the year.

Schroeder went 3-for-3 with a home run in last week's series opener at Valparaiso as she became the fourth player in program history to reach 200 career hits. Schroeder, who homered in three consecutive games, is currently fourth in Bradley history with 202 career hits and needs two to pass Kim Suffield for third on The Hilltop. In addition to the hits, Schroeder has moved into second all-time at Bradley with 17 career homers and has left the yard in three of the last five games.

In Valley play, Schroeder is hitting a team-best .361 with three doubles, three homers and 14 RBI. She needs four runs to tie the Bradley career mark of 139 runs set by Amy Pera (1992-95) and is three runs short of the highest season total by a Brave since 2004.

Currently a half-game behind eighth-place Loyola in the Valley standings, the Braves need at least two wins this weekend to have a chance to secure a spot in the Valley Tournament, which would need to be coupled with at least two Indiana St. victories over Loyola. Assuming all the games on the final weekend are played a BU sweep would lock up a spot in the tournament field.

The 2018 Missouri Valley Conference Tournament will be held May 10-12 in Des Moines, Iowa.

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Players Mentioned

#5 Elizabeth Leonard: INF; 5' 9"; Senior; L/R

#17 Maria Schroeder: UTL/C; 5' 6"; Senior; R/R

Players Mentioned

#5 Elizabeth Leonard
: 5' 9"; Senior; L/R
: INF

#17 Maria Schroeder
: 5' 6"; Senior; R/R
: UTL/C

Softball Hosts Evansville In Final Home Series

Players Mentioned

#5 Elizabeth Leonard

#17 Maria Schroeder

Players Mentioned

#5 Elizabeth Leonard

#17 Maria Schroeder