CARBONDALE, Ill. – The Illinois softball team sealed an undefeated weekend and the Coach B Classic Championship with its fifth-straight win in a 2-1 victory over Northern Illinois on Sunday (March 4) afternoon at Charlotte West Stadium.
For the weekend, the Illini (8-6) outscored their opponents, 38 to six and totaled 50 hits in the five games, including eight doubles, four home runs and a triple.
Junior Emily Oestreich was a stand out in the circle, going 3-0 with an impressive 0.57 ERA after giving up just two earned runs on 10 hits and six walks and striking out 25 in 24.2 innings.
Offensively, juniors Kiana Sherlund and Stephanie Abello paced the Illini, each with a .471 batting average and a combined 16 hits – including three doubles and a grand slam – to go along ith 13 RBI and nine runs scored. Redshirt-junior Carly Thomas also turned in a team-high eight RBI as well as seven hits, five of which went as doubles.
Quotable
"I was proud of the overall effort this weekend. We played three well-coached teams and were able to play solid, consistent softball in all five games. I feel like we have an opportunity to settle in and become a very competitive squad if we stay focused and play team softball. I thought Emily Oestreich showed a lot of poise today by staying strong after throwing a ton of innings on Friday and Saturday and Taylor Edwards did a masterful job coming in to finish off the win." – head coach Tyra Perry
What Happened
Sherlund got the Illini off to a fast start with a leadoff single in the opening frame, before Thomas brought her home on an RBI single. Abello then made it 2-0 in favor of UI with an RBI double down the right field line.
The Huskies (4-11) got a run back in the fourth with four-straight singles to close within 2-1, but Oestreich and the Illini defense kept the visitors at bay with back-to-back outs.
From there, junior pitcher Taylor Edwards allowed just three hits over the next three innings for her second save of the season as the Illini earned the Coach B Classic Championship with the 2-1 win.
Oestreich (5-2) earned her third-straight win of the weekend after giving up just one earned run on six hits and a walk, while striking out four in 4.0 innings of work.
The Illini notched five hits on the day with Sherlund and Thomas each registering a hit and a run.
What's Next
The Illini will open midweek action on Wednesday (March 7) with a road trip to Peoria, Ill., to take on Bradley in the Louisville Slugger Sports Complex at 6 p.m. CT.
For more Fighting Illini softball news, stay tuned to FIGHTINGILLINI.com and follow the team on Twitter @IlliniSB or like Fighting Illini Softball on Facebook.
