The Bradley softball team competed in the Citrus Classic in Kissimmee, Florida, at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex this past weekend.
They finished the weekend with a 1-4 record, losing three of their games to ranked competition. Their lone win was a 4-0 shutout of Purdue thanks to a complete game by sophomore pitcher Emma Jackson.
Head coach Amy Hayes said Jackson really impressed her in the win.
“[Purdue] struggled with her, and they just could not find a way to get to her,” Hayes said. “She threw, I think, her best game of her career so far.”
Losses to ranked opponents No. 24 South Carolina, No. 22 Minnesota and No. 23 Kentucky soured the weekend for the Braves. The Braves were able to put up six runs on Kentucky and only lost due to a six run seventh inning by Kentucky to win 11-6.
Despite the losing record on the weekend, Hayes said there is a benefit to playing quality-ranked competition to help her team realize they are not far from these teams.
“I think it’s important for [players] to understand that they’re right there,” Hayes said. “Sometimes it’s the outside talk of thinking you’re a mid-major rather than just thinking you’re a ball player like everybody else that gets in the way.”
Moving forward, the early season challenges for the Braves helped highlight opportunities for growth. According to Hayes, Bradley is hoping to improve in the key area of hitting in their last two preseason tournaments before progressing into conference play.
“We’ve always been able to hang our hat on hitting, and I think we’re a little young in that sense offensively,” Hayes said.
The Braves started with a 4-6 record for the season so far. Five of those losses have come against nationally ranked competition, with Bradley suffering two losses to the No. 4 Washington Huskies.
Bradley is traveling to Memphis, Tennessee, for the River City Classic this weekend for five games. They start today against Louisiana-Monroe at 1 p.m., followed by a 3:30 p.m. game against University of Missouri-Kansas City.
