By Jess Westendorf
The Iowa softball team (15-27) will play Western Illinois (19-26) tonight, a game that had been scheduled as a Wednesday night tilt.
With a high chance of inclement weather coming through the Iowa City area Wednesday, the two teams agreed to move the game up in order to avoid a cancellation.
For the Hawkeyes, the move up has to feel good, because they get a chance to get the bad taste out of their mouth after last weekend’s sweep at the hands of No. 5 Minnesota.
In midweek games, the Hawkeyes are 4-2 and have won four straight games since dropping a double-header at Missouri on March 15.
Not only will Iowa try to continue its midweek winning streak, it also wants to get back to winning, period.
As the Minnesota series progressed, the Hawkeyes did gain some momentum, and they hope to continue that momentum into tonight’s game.
Iowa will look to senior Claire Fritsch and redshirt freshman Brooke Rozier to get the bats hot, something Iowa struggled with at Minnesota.
Kaitlyn Mullarkey leads the Hawkeyes in hits (32), RBIs (16), doubles (11), and runs (17). Not only is she taking over on offense, she does so on defense as well, with 257 putouts.
Rozier was one of three Hawkeyes able to get the bats swinging in the second game against Minnesota on April 22, going 1-for-2.
The redshirt freshman leads the Hawkeyes with a .411 slugging percentage, 2 triples, and 3 home runs. She is only 2 triples away from securing herself a spot in the top 20 in single season triples.
The Hawkeyes are 9-5 at Pearl Field this season and after tonight, could make that double-digit wins, something Iowa hasn’t done since 2009.
Western Illinois enters the matchup in the same situation after dropping a three-game series to North Dakota State last weekend.
It has been a while since Iowa and Western Illinois have met on the diamond.
The last time was on April 2, 2015, and tonight’s game will give Iowa a chance to avenge that 11-8 loss.
Iowa does hold a 26-21 series lead over Western Illinois, something Iowa intends to keep. Game time is set for 7 p.m. at Pearl Field; it will also be televised on BTN Plus.
