2019 NCAA Lexington Regional
When & Where	May 17-19, 2019 // John Cropp Stadium // Lexington, Ky.
Schedule	Friday, May 17 Game 1: ILLINOIS vs. Virginia Tech | 11 a.m. CT Game 2: Toledo vs. No. 14 Kentucky | 1:30 p.m. CT Saturday, May 18 Game 3: Winner Game 1 vs. Winner Game 2 | 11 a.m. CT Game 4: Loser Game 1 vs. Loser Game 2 | 1:30 p.m. CT Game 5: Loser Game 3 vs. Winner Game 4 | 4 p.m. CT Sunday, May 19 Game 6: Winner Game 3 vs. Winner Game 5 | 11 a.m CT Game 7: (If necessary) | 1:30 p.m. CT
Game Coverage	Live Stats // Video: ESPN3 // Radio: WDWS 1400 | Regional Tournament Central
Full Game Notes	Illinois | Kentucky | Toledo
Statistics	Illinois | Virginia Tech | Kentucky | Toledo
Series History	Virginia Tech: Illinois leads, 3-0 // Last: W, 10-5; 2/27/2010; Columbus, Ga. // Streak Won 3 Kentucky: Illinois trails, 1-4 // Last: W, 6-5 (8); 2/8/2019; Houston, Tx. // Won 1 Toledo: Illinois trails, 0-1 // Last: L, 6-0; 3/2/2013; Clearwater, Fla. // Lost 1
Tickets	Ticket Information
Social Media	@IlliniSB  | #Illini  | Facebook  | @IlliniSB  | YouTube

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - For the seventh time in program history and the third time in the last four seasons, the Illinois softball team earned a berth into the 2019 NCAA Tournament and was selected as one of the 32 at-large bids, as announced on the NCAA Selection Show on Sunday (May 12) night.

The Illini were selected to the Lexington Regional, hosted by overall No. 14 seed Kentucky in Lexington, Ky., and will face Virginia Tech (45-9, 20-4 ACC) on Friday (May 17) at 11 a.m. CT in the opening round at John Cropp Stadium. The double-elimination regional will be held on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, with the host Wildcats (33-22, 14-10 SEC) facing off against Toledo (29-26, 10-9 MAC) in the other first round contest at 1:30 p.m. CT on Friday. Both games will be broadcasted on ESPN3.

Each regional follows a double-elimination format with at least three wins required to get to the NCAA Super Regionals.

ILLINI NOTES

• Illinois is making its seventh overall appearance in the NCAA Tournament and owns a 10-12 record in postseason play with appearances in 2003, 2004, 2009, 2010, 2016 and 2017. The Illini have advanced to the Regional Final twice in program history, falling to No. 3 seed LSU in the Waco, Texas Regional in 2004 and No. 14 seed Kentucky in the Lexington Regional in 2017.
• The Illini have been selected to the Lexington Regional for the third time in the last four years, after also traveling to Kentucky during head coach Tyra Perry's first two seasons at Illinois in 2016 and 2017.
• The Illini enter the 2019 NCAA Tournament with an overall record of 32-23 and finished in a tie for eighth place in the Big Ten Conference standings with a 9-14 mark. As a conference, the Big Ten earned three top 16 seeds and a total of six bids for the first time since 2009 with No. 7 Minnesota, No. 15 Michigan and No. 16 Northwestern set to host Regionals, while Wisconsin and Ohio State join the Illini as at-large selections.
• Including the five other Big Ten teams that the Illini have played this season and were selected to the NCAA Tournament, the Illini have faced 14 teams in this season's tournament field. Along with the conference foes, the Illini have faced No. 1 Oklahoma, No. 13 Oklahoma State, No. 14 Kentucky, Sam Houston State, Houston, Tulsa, Seattle, DePaul and Missouri.
• The Illini have reached at least 32 wins in each of head coach Tyra Perry's first four seasons, while it marks just the second time in program history that the Illini have registered a four-year span with at least 32 wins in each season after notching wins of 49, 34, 39 and 45, respectively, from 2001-04.
• The 2019 season marks the 20th season for the Illinois softball program, with the Illini owning a 58.3 winning percentage as a program and earned their landmark 600th win in the first game of the 2019 season - a 7-4 win over No. 22 Oklahoma State - and own a 631-452-2 overall record.
• In the most recent NCAA softball RPI that was released on Monday (May 13), the Illini came in at the No. 41 spot and rank as the sixth-highest team in the league in the rankings. No. 9 Minnesota leads the conference, with No. 11 Northwestern, No. 12 Michigan, No. 35 Wisconsin and No. 38 Ohio State sitting ahead of the Illini.

LAST TIME AGAINST KENTUCKY

• The Illini opened the 2019 season with a bang, posting back-to-back wins over No. 22 Oklahoma State, 7-4, and No. 13 Kentucky, 6-5 in eight innings, en route to registering the program's 600th win on Friday (February 8) at the Cougar Softball Stadium.
• Senior Kiana Sherlund paced the Illini (2-0) with a 4-for-6 performance at the plate with three doubles and a stolen base, while sophomore Bella Loya turned in five RBI on two home runs. Redshirt-senior Annie Fleming – in her first action since the 2017 season after sitting out last season due to injury – collected three hits, two RBI, a home run and a run in her return.
• Freshman Sydney Sickels collected both her first collegiate start and win on the day, went all 8.0 innings, allowing four earned runs on 10 hits and four walks and struck out six against the Wildcats.

BIG TEN TOURNAMENT RECAP

• The Illini, who earned the ninth seed in the 2019 Big Ten Tournament, opened the competition by putting together a late-inning rally to earn a 6-4 come-from-behind win over eighth-seeded Nebraska in the first round of the Big Ten Softball Tournament on Thursday (May 9) at Andy Mohr Field in Bloomington, Indiana.
• Redshirt-senior Annie Fleming and senior Kiana Sherlund led the way with two hits and two runs each, while Fleming adding an RBI in the win. Redshirt-senior Carly Thomas added a team-high three RBI, with seniors Veronica Ruelius and Alexis Carrillo and freshman Kailee Powell each posting two hits on the day.
• Freshman Sydney Sickels (18-13) had a solid outing in the circle to earn the win, giving up three earned runs on seven hits and four walks and striking out six in 6.2 innings of work.
• In one of the best performances in her career, senior Taylor Edwards then held Big Ten regular season champion and No. 1 seed Michigan scoreless for seven innings, before the Wolverines ended the ninth seeded Illinois softball team's run in the 2019 Big Ten Tournament with a walk-off solo home run in the bottom of the eighth on Friday (May 10).
• Edwards went the distance for the Illini, allowing just seven hits and three walks and striking out one in the complete game effort.

FLEMING & THOMAS COLLECT GOOGLE CLOUD COSIDA ACADEMIC ALL-DISTRICT FIRST-TEAM HONORS

• Redshirt-seniors Annie Fleming and Carly Thomas were named to the Google Cloud Academic All-District First-Team, the College Sports Information Directors of America announced on Thursday (May 9). The duo now advances to the Academic All-America ballot.
• Fleming becomes the first-ever three-time Academic All-District honoree for the Illini, while Thomas earns her first-career Academic All-District plaudit.

ILLINI QUARTET EARN BIG TEN POSTSEASON HONORS

• A quartet of Illinois softball student-athletes collected postseason honors when the Big Ten Conference announced its All-Big Ten accolades on Wednesday (May 8) afternoon, with sophomore Bella Loya and senior Kiana Sherlund nabbing First-Team plaudits. Redshirt-senior Carly Thomas was a Big Ten All-Second Team and All-Defensive Team selection, while senior Veronica Ruelius was honored Illinois' Big Ten Sportsmanship Award recipient.
• Loya picks up her first all-conference selection after being named the Big Ten All-Freshman Team a season ago, while Sherlund becomes just the fourth Illini to collect multiple conference first-team honors with her second-straight first-team selection. 
• With her accolades, Thomas now becomes a three-time All-Big Ten honoree after earning first-team plaudits as a freshman and redshirt-junior as well as a three-time All-Defensive Team selection.

SICKELS BREAKS SINGLE SEASON SAVES PROGRAM RECORD

• Freshman Sydney Sickels earned her fifth save on May 3 night as she pitched a scoreless final two and a third innings as the Illini opened their final Big Ten Conference regular season series with a 7-2 win over Purdue at Eichelberger Field. 
• With her fifth save of the season, Sickels broke the Illinois single season record for saves previously held by Amanda Fortune (2004), Claire DeVreese (2005) and Breanna Wonderly (2017).

THOMAS IS DOUBLE TROUBLE

• With three doubles in a win over UNI on March 1, redshirt-senior Carly Thomas became the career doubles leader at Illinois after passing Erin Montgomery's (2011-14) total of 52 two-baggers and currently owns 68 in her Illini career. 
• Along with the career record, Thomas registered her 20th double of the season in the second game of the April 13th doubleheader at Iowa to break Lana Armstrong's program mark of 19 two-baggers set during the 2008 campaign.
• Thomas leads the NCAA with her 24 two-baggers and is also second with 44 doubles per game. 

SHERLUND NEARING TRIPLES RECORD

• Senior Kiana Sherlund owns 13 career triples and is just one three-bagger away from tying Rachelle Coriddi's program record of 14 from 2003-06.