Instead of basking in the sun over Spring Break, the softball team banged heads against some of the nation's best in a week-long odyssey of ups and downs. When all was said and done, the Cardinals (7-7, 1-0 Mid-American Conference) had registered perhaps the biggest victory in the program's history, lost one of their best players to injury, and experienced everything in between.
Head coach Terri Laux's squad traveled to Tallahassee, Fla. to start the break, and competed in the Florida State Invitational. On the first day of competition, the Cardinals picked up a pair of victories over Missouri-Kansas City and Winthrop to set up a showdown with the top team in their pool, No. 8 Michigan.
Against the Wolverines, the Cardinals entered the bottom of the sixth inning trailing 4-1. Sophomore Kris Burdine took matters into her own hands, smashing a two-run double and then scoring the tying run on a double steal. The team battled into the ninth inning, when senior Carrie Lively provided the dramatic moment, scoring junior Ruth Hjelmeland on a game-winning sacrifice fly.
"I don't think we were at full power on offense at any point during the tournament, but our defense did an awesome job and our pitching staff kept us in the game," Laux said about her team's effort against Michigan.
"We got the key hits when we needed them. This win says a lot about what these kids can do, and shows that we can hang with the best teams, even when we're not at our best offensively. It shows where we are and where we can be."
The Cardinals next tallied a 4-2 victory over Iowa State to advance to the semifinals of the tournament, where their winning streak was ended by No. 4 Nebraska. Lively was named to the all-tournament team, as was sophomore pitcher Randi Freese. Freese picked up wins against Missouri-Kansas City and Michigan, and recorded saves versus Winthrop and Iowa State. For her efforts, Freese was named MAC Player of the Week. But her glory was short-lived.
In the team's next game at Auburn, Freese was hit with a line drive off the bat of Tiger Ashley Moore. Freese (2-4) ended up taking the loss in the game, and was taken to the emergency room with a wrist injury. "Randi had a hell of a line shot hit back at her from a girl who was an All-American last year," Laux said. "She just couldn't get out of the way."
Laux said Freese's injury isn't serious, and that her staff ace will soon return. But perhaps more of a contributing factor to the loss against Auburn was the lack of offense the plagued the team in their first weekend of play. The Cardinals managed no runs against Auburn, losing 0-9, and were shut out in their next game as well, losing 0-2 at Georgia State.
"We might have been a little tired going into the Auburn game, but they're a good hitting team anyway," Laux said. "We took our lumps there. Against Georgia State, we had no chances to score. I think our whole team was in a funk."
But the Ball State offense would re-awaken on Saturday, as the team traveled to Bloomington to face in-state rival Indiana and MAC opponent Northern Illinois. The Cardinals used a five-run seventh inning, including a two-run home run from Hjelmeland, and a seven inning, five-strikeout performance from junior pitcher Courtney Winger to beat the Hoosiers 6-3. Winger returned against Northern Illinois, pitching the final three innings in an 11-inning game that the Cardinals won 5-4.
"I think everyone is a little tired and ready to be home," Laux said. "But the girls know they're here to do a job. But there's not a lot of glamour in all the traveling around and everyone is ready to be back on a normal schedule."
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