NORMAL, Ill. – The Illinois State softball opens its 2018 campaign at the USF-Wilson DeMarini Tournament in Tampa, Florida, Thursday through Sunday. The Redbirds will face a pair of preseason Top-25 ranked teams during the five-game tournament.
Illinois State will face host USF in the season opener on Thursday at 5:30 p.m. ISU resumes competition on Friday for a doubleheader versus UAB at 1:30 p.m. and No. 2 Florida at 3:45 p.m. Saturday's matchup against Georgia State is scheduled for 5 p.m., with the weekend finale against No. 16/18 Michigan Sunday at 8 a.m.
The 2017 Missouri Valley Conference regular season co-champions were picked as the 2018 preseason favorite by league's head coaches in the annual preseason poll.