University of Illinois
Nebraska
@IlliniSB Welcomes in Nebraska for B1G Opener
March 24, 2016 | Softball
Stress reliever baseball giveaway on Friday, Little League and Girl Scout Day on Saturday and Easter festivities on Sunday
| Illinois (19-9, 0-0 Big Ten) vs. Nebraska (18-9, 0-0 Big Ten) | |
|---|---|
| When & Where | March 25-27, 2016 // Friday: 6 p.m. // Saturday: 1 p.m. // Sunday: 12 p.m. // Urbana, Ill. // Eichelberger Field |
| Game Coverage | Live Stats | Live Video |
| Full Game Notes | Illinois | Nebraska | Big Ten |
| Statistics | Illinois | Nebraska |
| Series History | Illinois trails, 3-10 // Last: 1-9 (5); 5/3/2015 // Streak: Lost 1 |
| Social Media | @IlliniSB  | #Illini | Facebook  | @IlliniSB  | YouTube  |
Champaign, Ill. - After wrapping its non-conference tournament schedule, the Illinois softball returns to Eichelberger Field for its Big Ten Conference opener, hosting No. 24/RV Nebraska in a three-game series on March 25-27. Game times are set for 6 p.m. CT on Friday night, 1 p.m. on Saturday and 12 p.m. on Sunday.
The Fighting Illini posted a 5-2 record in its California spring break trip, going 4-1 in the San Diego Classic II with wins over Long Beach State, Weber State, Saint Mary's College and Seattle, before splitting a doubleheader with Cal State Northridge last Tuesday.
In Tuesday's game two 4-3 win over CSUN, junior pitcher Breanna Wonderly fanned a career-high 10 batters in a career-high 10 innings, tying the third-most innings pitched in a single game. She joins Sherri Taylor, who pitched 10 innings on two occasions in 2003 and 2004. It was also the fifth 10-frame game in program history and tied the Illinois record for the third-longest game in program history.
Promotions
Friday | Stress Reliever baseball giveaway
Saturday | Little League Day/Girl Scout Day // Register your troop for reserved seating and recognition during the game and get a Girl Scout patch REGISTER // Post-game autographs
Sunday | Easter Sunday // Meet the Easter Bunny // Post-game Easter Egg Hunt
Illini Notes
- The Illini own an 8-7 record in both Big Ten openers and Big Ten home openers with the last Illini win in both a conference opener and league home opener coming in 2012 when UI took two-of-three from Minnesota on March 24-25.
- For the 14th time in program history, the Illini started off their home schedule in winning fashion as UI swept IUPUI on March 15 at Eichelberger Field. The Illini bats came alive in an 8-0 five-inning win in game one as junior Jade Vecvanags and sophomore Kate Giddens combined for the 11th no-hitter in the history of the Illinois softball program, before notching a come-from-behind 5-4 eight-inning victory in game two.
- The Illini's 11-0 five-inning win over East Carolina on March 6 marked an historic occasion for the softball program, as it was the 500th victory in the history of the program. Since its inception in 2000, the Illini have posted a 507-378-2 (.573) record in 17 seasons.
- The Illini have won 12 of their last 15 games, including a season-long six-game winning streak from March 6 to March 19 and have outscored their opponents 108-50 in that span.
- The Illini have posted five run-rule victories (Central Michigan, Penn, East Carolina, IUPUI, Seattle) this season and have plated the three highest run totals for the season in wins over Sam Houston State (13), Central Michigan (11) and East Carolina (11).
- The Illini rank in the top three of the Big Ten in multiple categories, including leading the conference with 238 hits, 46 doubles, 11 triples, 369 total bases and 67 steal attempts. UI also ranks second in the league in team batting average (.314), runs scored (167), sacrifice bunts (21), sac flies (eight) and stolen bases (53) and is third in slugging percentage (.487).
- In the NCAA, the Illini sit fifth with 0.39 triples per game, while also ranking in the top 50 in doubles per game (21st, 1.64), stolen bases per game (28th, 1.89), scoring (35th, 5.96), slugging percentage (39th, .485), batting average (45th, .313) and WL percentage (50th, 0.679).
- Senior Allie Bauch and sophomore Annie Fleming rank in a tie for second in the Big Ten and are 14th in the nation with three triples each this season. They also rank in a tie for 44th with 0.11 triples per game.
- Sophomore Carly Thomas leads the Illini and tied for third in the Big Ten in with 10 doubles so far this season. She also ranks 48th in the NCAA with 0.36 doubles per contest.
- Thomas has also totaled a team-high 12 multi-hit games and currently owns a seven-game reached base streak. She has also posted the longest hitting streak for the Illini at eight games. Bauch owns the longest reached base streak at 10 contests.
- The Illini have been stealthy on the base paths, going 53-for-67 in stolen base attempts with senior Kylie Johnson pacing the Illini with a 12-for-13 mark to rank fourth in the conference and 115th in the NCAA.
- After a breakout weekend at the USF Under Armour Invitational, freshman pitcher Taylor Edwards earned Big Ten Freshman of the Week honors as she went 2-0 with an 0.70 ERA in 10 innings, posting her first two collegiate wins in the circle. She allowed just one earned run on the weekend on nine hits and totaled six strikeouts.
- The Illini opened the 2016 season down in Miami, Fla., at the JuiceBlendz FIU Invitational on Feb. 12-14, where they went 2-3, including wins over Valparaiso and then-No. 10 Florida State, before taking part in the inaugural Big Ten/ACC Softball Challenge on Feb. 19-21. The Illini went 3-1 with a sweep of Boston College and a split with North Carolina as they helped the Big Ten to a dominating win in the challenge by taking 20 of 32 contests on the weekend. The Illini next traveled to the Texas Invitational where they went 2-3, before finished non-conference tournament action with back-to-back 4-1 weekends at the USF Under Armour Invitational and the San Diego Classic II.
- In the Illini's season-opening tournament in Miami, Fla., UI registered a 5-1 win over then-No. 10 Florida State on Feb. 13, with the victory over the Seminoles marking the first win over a ranked opponent since defeating No. 4 Michigan on April 25, 2014 at Eichelberger Field. It was also just the seventh win against a top-10 foe and just the fourth win against a top-10 team not named Michigan.
Scouting the Huskers
Nebraska, who enter this weekend's series with an 18-9 overall record in 2016, come in at No. 24 in the USA Today/NFCA Top-25 poll and are receiving votes in the ESPN.com/USA Softball Top-25 poll. The Huskers went 3-3 last week, including a disappointing 2-3 showing at the Easton Tournament. They earned wins over Omaha, UNLV and DePaul last week, while losing to New Mexico, Arkansas and No. 13 Oklahoma. In Saturday losses to New Mexico and Arkansas, NU had the tying or go-ahead run on base in the seventh inning of both games but could not pull out either victory. NU was scheduled to take on Iowa State on Wednesday in part of its nine-game, 11-day road trip, but the game was cancelled due to weather.
Laura Barrow led the Huskers in five games at the Easton Tournament last weekend, going 8-for-16 (.500) with two doubles and four RBIs. MJ Knighten paces the Husker offense with a .429 average on a team-high 36-for-84 hitting to go along with 36 RBIs 15 home runs and four doubles. In the circle, Cassie McClure (10-4) and Emily Lockman (6-2) lead the Huskers as McClure owns a team-low 2.79 ERA in 67.5 innings with 27 earned runs and 51 strikeouts. Lockman owns a 3.02 ERA in 58.0 innings with 25 earned runs and 25 strikeouts.
Next Up
The Fighting Illini will take a break from the midweek action and next welcomes in Rutgers on April 1-3 in their second Big Ten series of the season at Eichelberger Field. Friday and Saturday's games will be available on BTN Plus, with Sunday's contest to air on BTN. Game times for the weekend are slated for 6 p.m. CT, 1 p.m. and 12 p.m., respectively.
