Ball State University Athletics
Softball Hosts Indiana In A Doubleheader Wednesday at 3 p.m.
April 12, 2010 | Softball
TWITTER UPDATES: @BallStSoftball
Game Information: After sweeping a two-game Mid-American Conference series against Eastern Michigan Saturday and Sunday, the Ball State Cardinals (24-9; 4-2 MAC) return to the BSU Softball Complex for their eighth and ninth consecutive home games Wednesday beginning at 3 p.m. against the Indiana University Hoosiers (8-24; 1-5 Big Ten). Live stats and audio will be available on www.ballstatesports.com as well as Twitter updates via @BallStSoftball.
Series History: Ball State and Indiana have met 63 times prior to Wednesday's doubleheader . . . The Hoosiers lead the overall series 36-27 . . . In the 2009 season, Indiana swept Ball State in a doubleheader April 22 in Bloomington, Ind., winning 2-1 and 8-0 against the Cardinals . . . Earlier in the 2009 season, however, the Cardinals defeated the Hoosiers, 4-1, in Clearwater, Fla., March 14 . . . Ball State also defeated Indiana in 2008 with a 4-2 win, March 11 in Tampa, Fla.
CARDINAL RECAP
Cardinals Sweep Eastern Michigan: Ball State swept their first Mid-American conference series, posting 3-1 and 4-3 wins against Eastern Michigan Saturday and Sunday, respectively . . . With the sweep, the Cardinals' 4-2 record leads the MAC West Division . . . Elizabeth Milian took the mound for the Cardinals in both games and improved her season record to 18-2 . . . Lisa Rozanski led the Cardinals with a .429 batting average in the two-game series, tallied three hits and notched one double . . . Rozanski, Ball State's career leader in stolen bases stole a perfect 2-2 against the Eagles . . . Sunday's game marked the first time all season that Ball State was able to battle back after trailing in the fifth inning . . . Pinch hitter, Jen Moore, is credited with hitting the game-tying double and Kristy Stratton with the game-winning hit, both in the bottom of the sixth.
Ware a Triple Threat: With 19 games left in the regular season, Jessie Ware, a senior transfer from Arizona State, tallied her tenth triple of the season April 9 against Central Michigan to become Ball State's all-time single season leader in this category . . . She is batting at a team-leading .414 clip and also leads the team with 46 hits, 33 runs and a .793 slugging percentage . . . With 22 RBI and 10 doubles, she is second to Amanda Montalto who owns 25 and 11, respectively . . . Ware and Montalto are tied with four homeruns apiece . . . She is second to Rozanski with 15 stolen bases to Rozanski's 18 . . . Last week, Ware led the MAC in runs scored, triples and total bases . . . She also shared the top spot in the conference for doubles with Montalto . . . On the field, Ware has 47 putouts and a .916 fielding percentage . . . She was named MAC West Division Player of the Week March 2 and March 30.
Milian Chasing Records: With 166 strikeouts this season, Milian needs seven to pass Ball State's career strike out leader, Bernie Coffman (1986-89) who amassed 628 . . . Milian already owns the school's single season record for strike outs, accumulating 204 in 2009 . . . With 71 career wins, Milian is second to Coffman in this category and needs just six wins to take the lead . . . Milian was chosen as the Mid-American Conference West Pitcher of the Week (March 23), her fourth nod this season and ninth of her career, including a Player of the Week honor in 2008 . . . Maintaining a 3.97 grade point average as a secondary mathematics education major, Milian was named the MAC Co-Female Scholar Athlete of the Week (March 26) - the first of her career . . . She has also received recognition on ESPN.com.
Returning MAC Pitcher of the Year: Milian, a Ball State senior, was selected as the 2009 MAC Pitcher of the Year and Nan Harvey Sportswoman of the Year . . . One of 30 candidates for the Lowe's Senior CLASS Award in the sport of softball . . . She tallied a 21-15 pitching record last season and was named to the All-MAC and National Fastpitch Coaches Association first teams . . . A member of the Academic All-MAC team two straight years, Milian was also named to the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District First Team last season . . . She ranked second in the MAC in wins (21), innings pitched (224) and complete games (27) as a junior plus held opponents to a .214 batting average, which ranked third in the league.
Additional Team Leaders: Rozanski, a 2009 All-MAC First-Team choice, ranked fifth in the nation in triples and 19th in the nation in stolen bases last year . . . She has a team-leading 18 steals in 24 attempts this season . . . Junior Alicia Barkley was named the 2009 MAC Player of the Year after posting a .337 batting average, including hitting at a .446 clip in conference play . . . She was named to the All-MAC First Team and the NFCA All-Region First Team . . . This season, Barkley is leading the Cardinals in MAC play with a .421 batting average and eight hits . . . She is tied with Ware in conference triples, each tallying one against conference opponents
Ball State's Coach Nicholson: Ball State head coach Craig Nicholson, in his fourth season at the helm for the Cardinals and 15th year as a head coach, earned his 100th win at Ball State in a 7-0 shutout against Temple, March 13 . . . This makes him the first head coach in school history to reach 100 wins in just 195 games . . . The 2009 Mid-American Conference Coach of the Year is currently 111-99 at Ball State . . . He owns an 834-189 career coaching mark for a .815 winning percentage . . . Prior to coming to Ball State, Nicholson spent 11 years as the head coach at Central Arizona College where he was named the National Junior College Athletic Association Coach of the Year in 1997, 1999, 2003 and 2005 . . . He was also the National Fastpitch Coaches Association Junior College Coach of the Year in 1997, 1999 and 2005 . . . Nicholson led Central Arizona to NJCAA National Championships in 1997, 1999, 2003 and 2005, and garnered national runner-up finishes in 1996 and 2000 . . . Central Arizona won seven conference championships and eight regional titles in his 11 seasons.
2010 Season: Having played 26 consecutive road games at the beginning of the season and upsetting then-ranked No. 3 Missouri, the Cardinals began home play April 3 and are now 4-3 at home . . . Their longest winning streak this season spanned nine games (March 6-March 19).
Ball State's 2010 Preseason: The Cardinals were selected by the MAC head coaches as the preseason favorite to win the 2010 Mid-American Conference West Division . . . In addition, Ball State begins the 2010 season ranked No. 38 in the country in the ESPN.com/USA Softball Preseason Collegiate Top 25 Poll released Jan. 25 . . . Ball State was joined by BYU and San Diego State, who also received four votes in the poll.
The 2009 Season: Ball State won the school's first-ever Mid-American Conference Championship with an 18-3 league mark, which was the best regular season record in school history . . . The Cardinals were 29-24 overall.
