Softball Opens Season At Slugger Dome

Softball 2/18/2021 9:00:00 AM

PEORIA, Ill. -- Bradley Softball will play its season opener at home for the first time since 2018, as the Braves kick off the 2021 season inside at the Louisville Slugger Sports Complex Slugger Dome Friday with an 11 a.m. doubleheader against Western Illinois before hosting Saint Louis in a single game Monday at 11 a.m.

Posting a 14-9 record during the shortened 2020 season came to an abrupt end, Bradley will be playing its first home games since hosting the 2019 Missouri Valley Conference Championship in May of that year.

At this point, no fans will be allowed to attend games played indoors. BradleyBraves.com will provide live stats for all three upcoming games to open the season.

Western Illinois owns a 41-21 lead in the all-time series, with Friday's doubleheader marking the first meeting between the two in-state foes since BU won a pair of games in 2018. While the Braves have won the last three in the series, the teams have split the last six meetings and Bradley is 12-3 in the last 15 meetings since the start of the 2004 campaign. The Braves are 7-1 at home against the Leathernecks over that stretch. The teams have played just three times since the 2013 season ended a 14-year stretch where the squads played at least once per season.

Bradley owns a commanding 33-9 lead in the all-time series with Saint Louis with Monday's matchup the first meeting between the two teams since the Braves opened the 2018 season with an 8-0 victory over the Billikens at the Petersen Hotels Invitational. BU has played Saint Louis just three times in the 12 years Amy Hayes has been head coach of the Braves, owning a 2-1 record in those contests. Bradley is 14-2 all-time in home games against the Billikens.

Friday's season-opening doubleheader against Western Illinois kicks off the 43d season of competition for Bradley Softball. The Braves are 20-22 all-time in season openers after a 3-2 victory over #20 Arkansas in Las Cruces, N.M., to start the 2020 campaign. Over the last 15 seasons Bradley is 9-6 in season openers. The Braves are 4-0 when starting a season at home with all four of those games played since 2006. Overall, Bradley will be starting a season in the state of Illinois for the 11th time, owning a 7-3 mark in those games (three neutral and three road).

Bradley owns a 23-18 record in home openers after a 9-1 victory over Valparaiso to open the 2019 home slate. The Braves are 6-5 in home openers under 13th-year head coach Amy Hayes, winning the first home game of the year in both 2018 and 2019.

Friday's doubleheader against Western Illinois marks the first time since the 2018 season the Braves will play inside at the Louisville Slugger Sports Complex dome. Bradley kicked off that 2018 season with the Petersen Hotels Invitational, with the round-robin tournament featuring each of Bradley's' first two opponents of the year in Western Illinois and Saint Louis along with then fourth-ranked Washington and Miami (Ohio). The Braves also played a game against Illinois later that same season inside the dome. Overall, Bradley is 3-3 in games played inside at the Louisville Slugger Sports Complex with the last victory coming against the Leathernecks (5-4) on Feb. 11, 2018. The Braves have played a total of 22 home games indoors, boasting a 17-5 record in those contests. Bradley has at least three other games scheduled for inside the dome at this point.

Bradley finished the shortened 2020 season with a 14-9 overall record, marking the first time the Braves had back-to-back winning seasons since 2006 & 2007 after a 29-21 campaign in 2019. As a team, the Braves had a .304 batting average for the best team average dating back to 1994 and opponents had hit just .269 against BU pitching (best since 2012) to go with four shutouts. Bradley won seven of its last 10 games before the 2020 season came to an end and the Braves opened the year with a 3-2 victory over #20 Arkansas at the Troy Cox Classic in Las Cruces, N.M.

Following Monday's outing against Saint Louis, Bradley is slated to host Illinois-Springfield Tuesday, March 2 in an 11 a.m. game at the Slugger Dome.

Print Friendly Version