The Iowa softball team nabbed a 6-3 victory on the road over Illinois State on Tuesday afternoon in Normal, Illinois. Although the Redbirds scored a run in three consecutive innings, the Hawkeyes’ six runs in the contest’s first two innings gave Iowa the win.
Senior Tory Bennett contributed two home runs to the Hawkeyes, marking the first multi-home run game of the Fort Dodge, Iowa, native’s career. It was a leadoff home run to left field, courtesy of Bennett, that kickstarted a four-run first inning for Iowa.
“Tory Bennett is a great player and knows what to do with a good game plan,” first-year head coach Stacy May-Johnson told HawkeyeSports. “She’s a strong, physical athlete, and it’s been really cool to see her take off.”
The successful first inning for the Hawkeyes continued when junior Devin Simon and freshman McKenzie Leitgen got on base, allowing redshirt sophomore Nailyn Marshall, a transfer from Cal, to drill her first three-run homer of the season.
After a scoreless bottom of the first for Illinois State, Iowa ramped up the pressure with a single from sophomore Brianna Johnson, followed by Bennett’s second homer of the day to put the Hawkeyes up, 6-0.
Illinois State cut the gap to 6-1 in the third inning, followed by another run in the fourth inning, courtesy of an RBI single. In the fifth inning, the Redbirds loaded the bases and snagged one last run after a hit-by-pitch.
Iowa’s offense outhit Illinois State by nine hits. The Hawkeyes’ 13 hits were Iowa’s best in a single game this season. The Hawkeyes also collected only one error in the contest.
Meanwhile, a stout Iowa defense kept the contest scoreless for the last two innings, as it had for the first two. One successful component of the Hawkeye defense was Iowa’s pitching presence.
Senior Serayah Neiss, the 2025 Mountain West Pitcher of the Year at Fresno State, pitched three innings with two strikeouts. The Fresno State transfer allowed just one hit.
In just shy of two innings of relief pitching, junior Avery Sapp, a transfer from Utah Valley, struck out two Redbirds to nab the win. The Spanish Fork, Utah, native is one shy of 200 career strikeouts.
“We had a lot of hits and hit the ball really well,” May-Johnson said. “We should’ve had more runs, but a few things didn’t go our way. I’m really pleased with the way we hit the ball. These midweek games build a lot of confidence, and it’s good momentum going into the weekend.”
Up Next
Iowa, now 15-8 overall, travels to Champaign for this weekend’s three-game series against Illinois. The Hawkeyes are 1-2 in Big Ten action this season following a three-game set against the Buckeyes of Ohio State.
Played at Eichelberger Field, first pitch is scheduled for Friday, March 13, at 5 p.m. Central Time, with coverage provided by Big Ten Plus.