CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - The Illinois softball team next hits the road to Madison, Wis., for a Big Ten Conference series against Wisconsin in Goodman Diamond, but due to forecasted rain, cold temperatures and a possibility of snow, the schedule has been altered with the teams playing a doubleheader on Thursday (April 12) beginning at 1 p.m. CT, followed by the finale on Saturday (April 14) at 12 p.m., weather permitting. The teams were originally scheduled to play one game each day Friday-Sunday.
ILLINI NOTES
- The Illini went 3-0 last week with a series sweep of Maryland over the weekend. Illinois outscored the Teros 38 to three and compiled 38 hits, including eight doubles, two triples and three home runs, and totaled 36 RBI in the three games.
- The Illini have won six out of their last nine contests, including series wins over Purdue and Maryland and series split with Northwestern.
- In the latest NCAA softball RPI that was released on Monday (April 9), the Illini came in at the No. 55 spot.
- The 2018 season marks the 19th season for the Illinois softball program, with the Illini owning a 58.0 winning percentage as a program with a 587-424 -2 overall record, with the second game against Cal Poly on March 17 marking the 1,000 game Illini softball has played. In Big Ten conference action, the Illini also hold a 188-166 (.531) mark.
LAST WEEK STANDOUTS
- Junior Kiana Sherlund had another impressive offensive weekend with a .667 batting average on an 8-of-12 performance at the plate, including knocking a double, a triple and a home run, while also totaling seven RBI, five runs and 14 total bases. Sherlund also notched a 1.167 slugging percentage, a .692 on-base percentage and a 1.000 fielding percentage.
- The junior started the weekend with two hits – including her seventh triple of the season – as well as two RBI and a run on Friday, with her seven triples on the season tying for a program record. She continued her weekend with a 3-for-4 effort with one run on Saturday, before finishing the series with another 3-for-4 effort with a grand slam and a double, five RBI and three runs scored. Her grand slam marked the third of the season and fourth home run of the year for Sherlund.
- Junior Taylor Edwards posted a 2-0 record on the week after securing the first two wins over UMD on Friday and Saturday. Edwards registered a 0.00 ERA after allowing just one unearned run on six hits and three walks, while striking out four in 11.0 innings of action. Edwards started both games she appeared in, with one complete game and one shutout on the weekend as opponents recorded a .162 batting average against the right-hander.
- Edwards started her weekend with a one-hit, complete game performance on Friday and held the Terps to just two base runners on the day as she allowed just one walk and struck out two in the outing. She then allowed just one unearned run on five hits and struck out two in six inning of work to get the victory on Saturday and secure the series win.
- Junior Stephanie Abello and senior Leigh Farina each registered a .556 batting average with five hits, with Farina knocking a double and a triple and Abello adding a two-bagger.
- Senior Maddi Doane paced the Illini with nine RBI and a 1.500 slugging percentage on the weekend.
HEAD COACH TYRA PERRY EARNS 500TH CAREER WIN & 100TH WIN AT ILLINOIS
- With a 5-3 win over Cal Poly on March 17, head coach Tyra Perry earned her 500th career win as a Division 1 softball head coach. In her 17th season as a head coach, Perry owns a 509-444-1 overall record for a 53.4 winning percentage.
- In just her third season at the helm of the Illinois softball program, Perry earned her 100th win as an Illini with Sunday's 20-2 win over Maryland and is 100-56 (.641) during her time in the Orange and Blue.
ILLINI SWEEP MARYLAND IN OFFENSIVE OUTBURST
- The Illini earned their first Big Ten Conference series sweep of the season and the first since taking three from Michigan State last season with a dominating performance against Maryland that included two run-rule victories over the weekend.
- The Illini opened the weekend with an 11-0 shutout win on Friday, before a 7-1 victory on Saturday and a 20-2 beat down on Sunday. For the series, the Illini registered 38 runs on 38 hits, including eight doubles, two triples and three home runs, and totaled 36 RBI, in the three games, while holding the Terps to just three runs.
- The 20 runs plated by the Illini on Sunday tied for the second-most runs scored in a single game in program history, while their 19 RBI on the day also tied for second-most in program history and the 18 hits against the Terps ranked in a tie for fourth-most knocks in a game.
- Senior Maddi Doane and junior Kiana Sherlund paced the Illinois offense on Sunday as Doane went 2-for-3 with two home runs, six RBI and three runs, while Sherlund notched 3-for-4 performance with a grand slam and a double, five RBI and three runs. Doane's six RBI tied for the second-most RBI in a game in the record books.
DINGERS FOR DAYS
- The Illini have registered 36 home runs this season and have knocked at least one home run in 12 of the last 18 games - including hitting three in Sunday's win over Maryland and in each game of their doubleheader against Northwestern. UI also posted an eight-game span that ran from the second game against Missouri on March 14 to SIUE on March 21.
- In the last 13 games, the Illini have totaled 20 home runs, including hitting a season-high five dingers in game one against UIC on March 21.
- Senior Maddi Doane owns a team-high seven home runs after notching her second two-home run game this season on Sunday against Maryland and ranks tied for ninth in the Big Ten. Freshman Bella Loya sits in second on the team with six homers, with redshirt-junior Carly Thomas in third with five dingers. Junior Kiana Sherlund and freshman Maddison Demers have also knocked four dingers this season, with three of Sherlund's long balls coming as grand slams.
SHERLUND STAYING HOT
- Junior Kiana Sherlund has been an offensive catalyst for the Illini this season, leading UI and ranking second in the Big Ten with a .410 batting average. The junior also paces the conference with 59 hits, 36 runs, seven triples and 89 total bases, while ranking seventh with 33 RBI and 12th with a .618 slugging percentage.
- Her seven three-baggers this season is tied with Rachelle Coriddi (2005) for the program record for triples in a season and ranks third in the nation, with her 0.18 triples per game sits fifth in the NCAA.
- Sherlund also ranks fourth in the nation in hits, as well as 35th in total bases and 52nd in runs per game.
- She owns a team-high 20 multiple-hit games - including five three-hit contests and one four-hit game - while also totaling eight multiple-RBI games this season, highlighted by a five-RBI effort on Sunday against Maryland as well as four-RBI performances in wins over Murray State on March 3 and UIC on March 20.
ILLINI AT THE PLATE
- The Illini lead the Big Ten in nine offensive categories, including batting average (.335), slugging percentage (.519), on-base percentage (.401), runs scored (258), hits (360), RBI (234), doubles (64), triples (13) and total bases (558), while also sitting second in home runs (36).
- The Illini owns one of the top-ranked offenses in the nation, averaging 6.79 runs per game to sit fifth, while also ranking nationally in batting average (sixth), slugging percentage (11th), doubles per game (1.68, 12th), triples per game (0.34, 19th), on-base percentage (.398) and home runs per game (0.95, 33rd).
- Redshirt-junior Carly Thomas ranks 12th in the nation and leads the Big Ten with four sacrifices, while also ranking 15th and pacing the league with 14 doubles on the season and is 24th in the NCAA with 0.37 doubles per game. She also ranks in the conference in runs (36, t-first), RBI (t-fourth, 34), total bases (77, fifth), batting average (eighth, .374), hits (t-eighth, 46), slugging percentage (11th, .626) and on-base percentage (13th, .441).
- Along with Sherlund and Thomas, the Illini have five players in the top 15 in batting average in the Big Ten with senior Maddi Doane (sixth, .382), junior Stephanie Abello (11th, .365) and senior Sam Acosta (t-14th, .358) joining the duo in the rankings.
- In Big Ten action, Acosta and Thomas leads the league with 13 runs scored, while Doane paces the conference with 15 RBI and Sherlund leads with 25 total bases and two triples and is second with 16 hits.
