Softball looks to get back to its winning ways in a quartet of weekend conference games.

The Huskies (15-18, 3-3 MAC) will take on the Ball State Cardinals (20-13, 1-1 MAC) at 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. Friday at Mary M. Bell Field. They then will face the Miami (Ohio) RedHawks (16-17, 4-2 MAC) at 5:30 p.m. Saturday and 1 p.m. Sunday.

“Those two teams have a little more history of being at the top of the conference,” said head coach Christina Sutcliffe. “They’re definitely two teams who you try to beat. Preseason picks put them up there, so they’re the ones who we’re trying to go after.

“We’re all pretty offensively solid, so from that standpoint I would say we are pretty similar. But the difference between speed, power, pitching [and] defense as [to how] we match up, it’s a little bit differently.”

The Huskies dropped a Tuesday doubleheader against the Valparaiso Crusaders in Valparaiso, Ind., after entering the midweek contest on a four-game winning streak.

“Yeah, I think [we’re] ready for Ball State, Miami: big rivals of ours, top of the conference,” Sutcliffe said. “We know we can’t make mistakes, and we need to come out ready to go.

“The ability to get out of the big inning and get off the field is really going to be the difference. I foresee probably using three, four, if not all five pitchers this weekend. The key’s going to be when they come in being able to get us out of that inning and do what they can to keep us moving.”

Ball State

The Cardinals’ best all-around player is senior outfielder Jennifer Gilbert. Gilbert leads Ball State in runs scored (36), home runs (13), RBIs (43) and walks (19), and she’s second in doubles (10) and triples (three).

In the circle, Ball State is led by a pair of sophomore pitchers: Nicole Steinbach and Kelsey Schifferdecker. Steinbach is 9-6 with a 4.80 ERA and a 1.89 WHIP, and Schifferdecker is 8-5 with a 3.93 ERA and a 1.74 WHIP.

On the season, the Cardinals averaged 5.7 runs per game and surrendered an average of 5.2 runs per game.

Miami (Ohio)

The RedHawks are led by senior catcher Kayla Ledbetter, the reigning MAC East Player of the Week. Ledbetter went 10-for-18 (.556) with one home run, three runs scored, six RBIs and one stolen base last week.

Junior outfielder Bree Lipscomb leads the RedHawks in doubles (11), home runs (eight), RBIs (32) and slugging percentage (.646)

In the circle, senior pitcher Paige Myers and sophomore pitcher Amber Logemann enter with similar stats. Myers is 7-5 with a 2.79 ERA and a 1.45 WHIP, and Logemann is 6-8 with a 2.92 ERA and a 1.36 WHIP.

On the season, the RedHawks averaged 4.3 runs per game and surrendered an average of 4.2 runs per game. Miami’s .359 team batting average leads the MAC during conference play.

“This is a big weekend for us,” Sutcliffe said. “We can set ourselves pretty nice, and we actually have a chance to put ourselves on the top of the MAC here if we put a weekend together that I know we’re capable of. Hopefully we come out ready to go and fire it up and take care of business.”