Pat Ray
Although the Ball State softball team is sitting ten games below .500, with slim chances of making the Mid-American Conference tournament, head coach Terri Laux says her team can still make something of the season.
Ball State (9-19-1, 5-9-1 MAC) has a chance to start down that path this Saturday when the team competes against Indiana in a doubleheader in Bloomington. The two teams have begun to develop a rivalry in recent years, having split two games last spring.
The Cardinals also defeated the Hoosiers 1-0 on their home field prior to battling to a 6-6 stalemate on Sept. 9, 2002, during fall competition.
Indiana (15-23, 0-10 Big Ten), like Ball State is navigating through a rough campaign. While IU remains winless in the Big Ten, the Hoosiers were able to snap a nine-game skid by prevailing over Kentucky 4-2 on Wednesday in a game shortened to five innings because of darkness.
"You always want to be better than in-state schools," Laux said. "We need to finish this season on a good note and improve in some areas.
"We are pretty even going in there Saturday. I have to believe we will continue to fight every time we step on the field. We just really need to concentrate on making changes that can help us as a team."
The Cards still have an opportunity to finish .500 on the year if they win all of their remaining games. At the same time, Laux said she feels a need to start focusing on the future of the program.
In order to get a sense of what the makeup of the team will be like in coming years she said younger players would see more playing time during the final weeks of the season.
Freshman pitcher Nicki Hellam is one player Laux specifically mentioned would see more innings off the mound.
Meanwhile, five seniors who have been weathering frustrations with their teammates all year are now starting to realize the end of their collegiate careers is on the horizon. -รก
Laux says she feels for those athletes since nearly everyone associated with the team thought Ball State should be able to compete for a MAC crown at the beginning of the year.
"Who in their right mind would want to go through what they're going through right now," she said. "I feel bad for them. But I guess the best thing we can do is concentrate on the rest of the season."
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