| Illinois (1-4) Prepares for Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic |
| When & Where |
Feb. 23-25 // Cathedral City, Calif. // Big League Dreams |
| Friday, Feb. 23 |
#21 California // 12:30 p.m. CT
|
Saturday, Feb. 24
|
Cal Poly // 11:30 a.m. CT
#19 UCLA // 5 p.m. CT |
Sunday, Feb. 25
|
Hawaii // 10:30 a.m. CT |
| Series History |
Cal // 0-7
Cal Poly // 5-2
UCLA // 1-2
Hawaii // 0-2
|
| Television |
FloSports
|
| Stats |
Live Stats |
| Notes |
Illinois // Cal // Cal Poly // UCLA // Hawaii |
| Social Media |
@IlliniSB  | @IlliniSB  | Facebook  | YouTube  |
FIGHTING ILLINI PREPARE FOR MARY NUTTER COLLEGIATE CLASSIC
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Illinois softball travels to Cathedral City, Calif., for the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic from Feb. 23-25. The Fighting Illini face off against #21 California, Cal Poly, #19 UCLA and Hawaii during the three-day affair. The games can be streamed on FloSports.
SCOUTING CALIFORNIA
#21 California comes into the contest at 10-1 on the year. The team's lone loss came at then-ranked #21 Louisiana during the first weekend of the season. Last weekend, the Bears went 5-0, which included a victory over #21 Virginia Tech.
As a team, Cal is hitting .318 on the year, while the pitching staff posts a 2.71 ERA. Acacia Anders paces the squad with 17 hits, 11 runs and a .500 batting average. The junior has a hit in 10 of the team's 11 games this year. In the circle, Anna Reimers owns a 1.17 ERA after appearing in five contests while making four starts.
Illinois has never beaten Cal, posting an 0-7 all-time record against the Bears. The last meeting between the programs also took place in Cathedral City, Calif., with the Orange and Blue dropping the contest, 2-1.
LOOKING AHEAD AT CAL POLY
Cal Poly enters the weekend at 7-2 on the year after going 2-2 last weekend at the Silicon Valley Classic.
The team is hitting .318 on the season, while the Mustang pitching staff is tallying a 2.80 ERA. Through nine games, Jessica Clements boasts a squad-best .531 batting average, including four doubles and three RBI. Kate Judy's 1.83 ERA and 16 strikeouts both are team-best marks.
The Fighting Illini hold the 5-2 advantage for the all-time series, but Cal Poly took the last meeting between the programs, 12-2 in five innings during the abbreviated 2020 campaign.
CHECKING IN WITH UCLA
#19 UCLA enters the MNCC with a 3-4 record after having their weekend at the Clearwater Invitational cut short due to inclement weather. During their last outing, the Bruins topped then-ranked #7 Florida State, 14-10, but fell to #4 Georgia, 7-2.
As a team, the Bruins are batting .245 with Maya Brady leading the way with a .350 hitting clip. Out of her seven hits this year, three have been for extra bases, including a pair of home runs. UCLA owns a 6.84 team ERA during the young season. Kaitlyn Terry's 4.59 ERA paces the squad as the southpaw boasts a 1-0 record in four appearances.
Illinois trails, 1-2, in the all-time series with UCLA. However, the teams have not met since the 2015 season with the Bruins winning both meetings, 14-0 in five innings and 9-2.
REVIEWING HAWAII
Hawaii heads to Cathedral City with a 1-4 record this year. The weekend will be the first time the Rainbow Wahine play away from the Aloha State, following a rainout of their Tuesday game against California Baptist.
As a team, Hawaii is hitting .235 as a team while posting a 5.87 ERA. Addison Kostrencich leads the way in the circle with two complete games and a 1-1 record this season, including a shutout of Kansas City. Izabella Martinez owns a team-best .545 hitting clip with six hits and three RBI.
The Illini are searching for the program's first win against the Rainbow Wahine. The team is 0-2, with the last contest taking place 2006 in Palo Alto, Calif.
LAST TIME OUT
Illinois went 1-1 during its shortened weekend at the Spring Games. The team topped Liberty, 5-1, before falling to Kansas in a heartbreaker, 8-7.
Against the Flames, Lauren Wiles earned the win in the circle, tossing 4.2 innings while allowing five hits and one run. Tori McQueen made her debut in relief, fanning three batters during her 2.1 innings of work.
Illinois tacked on six runs in the final two frames against Kansas, but it was not enough for the Illini to secure the come-from-behind victory. Adisyn Caryl went 3-for-4 at the plate with an RBI. Paige Berkmeyer and Abby Ryniec added two hits and a pair of RBI each during the loss.
CALIFORNIA GIRLS
The Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic will be homecoming for a pair of Illini players. Serena Starks and Kelly Ryono hail from the Golden State, with both players coming to Champaign-Urbana by way of Huntington Beach.
SWINGING IN THE RAIN
Illinois softball has seen five games canceled due to weather, so far, this season. The Fighting Illini's Saturday slate against Auburn and Belmont at the Tiger invitational was aborted during opening weekend. After playing games against Liberty and Kansas at The Spring Games, the Orange and Blue's final three games of the weekend were called off.
A LEAGUE OF THEIR OWN
Illini softball head coach Tyra Perry is one of 19 Black female head coaches in all of Division-I softball for the 2024 season. Additionally, the Fighting Illini leader is one of just three at the helm for a program in a Power-5 conference, along with Marissa Young at Duke and Sharonda McDonald-Kelley at Michigan State.
The 2023 series between Michigan State and Illinois marked the first time two Black female head softball coaches faced off during Big Ten play and was believed to be the first meeting between two Black female head softball coaches at the Power-5 level.
OUT[FIELD] OF THIS WORLD
Illini outfielders Kelly Ryono and Serena Starks earned preseason accolades, courtesy of D1Softball. The publication named the duo in its 2024 Preseason Power Rankings among outfielders.
Ryono came in at 34th, according to the publication. The 2023 All-Big Ten Second-Team member paced the Fighting Illini with a .352 batting average and a .619 slugging percentage in 2023. The Huntington Beach, Calif., native tallied 48 RBI, tying for ninth in the record books for a single season. She also garnered NFCA honors last year, being named to the Midwest All-Region second team.
Starks placed 42nd on the power-ranking list, having joined the Fighting Illini for the 2024 slate after spending four seasons at Princeton. The outfielder earned a multitude of accolades following her career with the Tigers, including First-Team NFCA All-Mid-Atlantic Region in 2023, First-Team All-Ivy League in 2022 and 2023, Ivy League All-Tournament Team in 2023, and Honorable-Mention All-ECAC in 2022. During her time in New Jersey, she slashed .384/.412/.457, owning 135 hits and 69 runs with 18 doubles, a triple, and two home runs. In 2023 alone, she led the Ivy League with a .397 average and 69 hits, the most for a Princeton player since 1996.
WELCOME TO THE FAMILLY
The Illinois softball program added seven newcomers this off-season, including a pair of transfers. Reigning Ivy League Player of the Year Serena Starks joined the Illini following a stint at Princeton. Briana Bower returned to her home state following two years at Mississippi State. No stranger to the Illini program, Adisyn Caryl joined sister Zoe Caryl on the Orange and Blue squad.
NEW FACES IN NEW PLACES
The Fighting Illini saw changes in personnel during the offseason. Kirsten Verdun joined the Orange and Blue staff, serving as the Illini's new pitching coach. Verdun spent the last eight seasons at Big Ten foe Wisconsin as the Badgers associate head coach and recruiting coordinator.
An Illini great also joined head coach Tyra Perry's staff, as Sydney Sickels was named an assistant coach this past July. With the NCAA's coaching limit increase going into effect, Sickels was able to join the coaching staff following an impressive career on the field. The Indianola, Iowa, native rewrote the Illinois softball history book during her time in Champaign-Urbana. Sickels closed out her stint in 2023 as the program's leader in career strikeouts (714), strikeouts looking (204), and saves (19). She owns the single-game strikeout record, fanning 21 batters in an extra-inning thriller against Fordham this past season. The NFCA All-Region selection also tossed the 14th and 15th no-hitters in program history.
RYONO TAKES HOME HARDWARE
The 2023 season was one to remember for Kelly Ryono, as the outfielder received NFCA Midwest All-Region Second-Team honors and All-Big Ten Second-Team accolades following her most impressive season in the Orange and Blue.
A standout at the plate last season, Ryono tallied a career-best six RBI in a tilt with conference foe Rutgers. Her 12 home runs in 2023 led the Orange and Blue and included her first collegiate grand slam during the Fighting Illini's 13-4 rout of SIUE. Coming into her final season, Ryono owned a .307 batting average with a .484 slugging percentage in 172 games played.
MORE THAN A GAME
Prior to the Illini's opening weekend, the team traveled to Selma, Ala., to co-host the 2024 B1G Impact Youth Clinic. The B1G Impact is an initiative of the Big Ten Conference as a part of its commitment to positively impacting communities.
LOOKING BACK AT 2023
The Illinois softball team closed out the season with a 29-27 record, including a 6-16 mark in Big Ten action.
The season opener against Southern marked a special occasion for head coach Tyra Perry, as the matchup was against Perry's sister, Brittney Williams. Against Fordham on opening weekend, Sydney Sickels broke the career strikeouts record and the single-game record when she fanned 21 batters in the 6-4 victory over the Rams in extra innings.
The Fighting Illini hosted the Big Ten Tournament for the first time in program history and continued to etch their name in the Big Ten record books. The Orange and Blue became the first-ever 12-seed to take down a 5-seed at the event, topping Wisconsin, 8-4.
Kelly Ryono and Kailee Powell were named to the All-Big Ten Second Team, while Delaney Rummell was an All-Defensive Team selection. Miranda Gallardo was the team's Sportsmanship honoree.
THIS YEAR'S BIG TEN TOURNAMENT
The 2024 Big Ten Softball Tournament will be held in Iowa City, Iowa, at Bob Pearl Field. Of the 14 teams in the Big Ten, 12 qualify for the single-elimination tournament. This is the first time that Iowa has hosted the conference event since 2003.
