Ball State's rescheduled game with Purdue is at 4 p.m. at the BSU Softball Complex. The Cardinals and Boilermakers have gone in opposite directions since their originally scheduled game on April 1.
Since then, Ball State has won four of its first six Mid-American Conference games. The spurt has left the Cardinals in second place of the MAC West, behind Central Michigan.
Purdue's season, on the other hand, has gone downhill. The Boilermakers are 1-7 since the originally scheduled game, their latest loss coming against Iowa on Sunday.
Purdue (23-17) has been fighting to overcome the loss of All-American second baseman Andrea Hillsey. Hillsey tore her anterior cruciate ligament in practice in late March and will be out the remainder of the season.
Ball State is also still trying to overcome injury. Catcher Darla Dewig's absence in the lineup has been a noticeable one. Dewig re-injured the shoulder she had surgery on last season, and she will need surgery again. Outfielder Morgan Metzger is also out for the year with a fractured tibia, and second baseman Cortney Patteson is seeing limited action because of an AC sprain. Patteson pinch hit in the second game against Mid-American Conference rival Ohio last weekend, but still isn't able to throw.
The Cardinals come into the game having won two of three against Ohio. Ball State came out aggressive early, scoring six runs in the first inning over the three-game span.
"They know what they have to do," coach Terri Laux said. "I think they're finally realizing that that's the way we have to approach each game."
Randi Freese and Quincy Duran pitched the three games. Duran improved her record to 3-3 for the season with two wins. She allowed five hits in each game and allowed five runs while striking out nine in the two games.
"Randi and Quincy did a very good job. They held a great hitting team," Laux said.
Laux has been preaching consistency throughout the season, but she still saw stranded runners and defensive mistakes throughout the weekend. Overall, though, she was pleased to see the team's effort over the weekend.
"Errors are going to happen; there's no way to step around that," she said. "We came up with some huge plays. (The team) fought all weekend."
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