URBANA, Ill. - The Fighting Illini softball team dropped the series and regular season finale Sunday afternoon, falling to Penn State 2-0 at Eichelberger Field.
Illinois (34-19, 15-7 B1G) lost their first conference series of the season after dropping back-to-back games to the Nittany Lions. Penn State (31-21, 13-10 B1G) took the series via two shutouts, both by a score of 2-0. Sophomore left-hander Tori McQueen took the loss in game three to drop to 13-5 on the season, while Penn State's Bailey Parshall improved to 21-8 on the season after seven shutout innings.
HOW IT HAPPENED
It was a pitchers duel through the first two innings, as both teams went quietly while McQueen worked around a double in the first. The Nittany Lions grabbed the lead in the third inning after a single came around to score on a double to center field, putting Penn State up 1-0 through three innings after the Illini went down in order in the third.
The Illini threatened in the fourth as Avrey Steiner knocked a single down the left field line and a fielding error by a Penn State defender put two runners on with no outs. Kelly Ryono then reached on a fielders choice and stole second base, putting two runners in scoring position with one out, but two straight groundouts ended the threat in the fourth.
The Nittany Lions found another run in the fifth after a leadoff single came around to score on another double, extending the lead to 2-0 in favor of Penn State. The Illini again found two baserunners in the fifth on back-to-back singles from Paige Berkmeyer and Danielle Davis, but they were stranded on base as a strike out ended the Illini threat. Despite baserunners in both th sixth and the seventh, Illinois was unable to plate a run for the second-straight game, dropping the game and the series to Penn State by a score of 2-0.
UP NEXT
The Illini will begin the postseason at the 2022 Big Ten Softball Tournament on Thursday (May 12), with their opponent to be determined. Illinois has clinched a first round bye in the tournament, and will begin the tournament in the quarterfinal round. All tournament games will be broadcasted live on Big Ten Network, and Scott Beatty will have the radio call for WDWS 1400-AM and 93.9 FM.
