PEORIA, IL – The Bradley Braves Softball team will host Evansville this weekend after seven straight road games.

Game Information
Game 1
Date: Friday, April 17th
Time: 2:30 p.m. CT.
Location: OSF Healthcare Field at the Louisville Slugger Sports Complex in Peoria, IL
Watch | Live Stats

Game 2
Date: Friday, April 17th
Time: 5:00 p.m. CT.
Location: OSF Healthcare Field at the Louisville Slugger Sports Complex in Peoria, IL
Watch | Live Stats

Game 3
Date: Friday, April 18th
Time: 2:00 p.m. CT.
Location: OSF Healthcare Field at the Louisville Slugger Sports Complex in Peoria, IL
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Last Time Out
On Tuesday, the Braves split a midweek doubleheader at Northern Illinois. The team earned a 14-8 victory in game one against the Huskies. Senior Ashley Breeding hit a grand slam and an inside-the-park home run. The cleanup hitter went 7-8 on the day, with nine RBIs and a pair of walks to go along with her two home runs. Sophomore Emily Organ hit a home run of her own, scoring two. After starting off the second inning rally with her long ball, she added to her day by starting Bradley's insurance run rally with an RBI single in the sixth. Out of Bradley's 13 hits in the first contest, eight went for extra base hits. Five Braves had a multi-hit game, as senior Brynna Seitz and sophomore Olivia Turner both worked two walks. Freshman Gianna Hillegonds threw the final three frames in game one, allowing just one hit and one walk, with no Northern Illinois runs.

The last Missouri Valley Conference game the Braves appeared in was an eight-inning, 4-3 loss to Murray State. Breeding went 2-4 with a solo home run. Junior Ella Shafer went 2-3, with an RBI bunt single. Sophomore Morgan Schlosser only recorded one hit, but that swing earned her a triple.

Record Watch
Senior Kierston McCoy is tied for third place in career home runs in Bradley Softball program history. She is two away from tying second place, four away from tying the leader and five away from taking the title for herself. The Braves have a dozen regular-season games left for McCoy to climb the leaderboard. Her 10 home runs this season are the most the Mapleton native has hit in a single season across her collegiate career. The last time McCoy smashed a home run was on March 27th, when she sent two out of the park at home against UIC.

The Bradley Braves
As a team, the Braves have 39 home runs, the third-most in the Valley. In conference play, sophomore Abby Rusher has the fifth-most innings pitched, in the circle for 51 frames. Five Braves are hitting above .290 this season, with Schlosser leading the team with a .322 average. Freshman Kelsey Martin, Breeding and Organ all have an OPS of over 1.060 in conference play. The Braves have won two of their past three home games, scoring a total of 36 runs in 17 innings in that series against UIC. The Braves' offense has scored 6.9 runs a game since March 25th.

The Opponent
Evansville is 1-3 in their last four games, having the previous weekend as their Valley offweek. In conference contests, the Purple Aces are 9-9. Evansville is coming off a 7-5 loss at home against Western Kentucky. Niki Bode is hitting .396 for the Purple Aces, as Kate Ridgway has logged 115 strikeouts in 112 innings.

History Says
Bradley leads the series over Evansville, 47-41. Last season, the Braves earned a sweep at home over the Purple Aces. The first game of the weekend was a 10-9 12-inning victory. All 19 runs in this contest came in either the sixth, seventh, or twelfth innings. The rest of the series was a little quieter, as the Braves won 10-6 in seven frames and 8-0 in five innings. Breeding recorded five hits in the first two games of that series, Turner recording four hits in those same contests. Organ went 2-3 with an RBI in the last game between the two programs. The Braves have won the past five games against Evansville.