| Illinois (20-28) Hosts Iowa for Final B1G Series |
| When & Where |
May 3-5 // Urbana, Ill. // Eichelberger Field |
Weekend Series
|
Friday // 5 p.m. CT
Saturday // 1 p.m. CT // World's Largest Softball Tailgate & Senior Day
Sunday // 12 p.m. CT
|
| Series History |
Illinois leads, 30-26
|
| Television |
B1G+
|
| Stats |
Live Stats |
| Notes |
Illinois // Iowa |
| Social Media |
@IlliniSB  | @IlliniSB  | Facebook  | YouTube  |
ILLINOIS HOSTS IOWA FOR FINAL SERIES OF REGULAR SEASON
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Illinois softball readies for its final home series of the season as the team welcomes Iowa to Eichelberger Field this weekend. First pitch from Friday's game is slated for 5 p.m., while Saturday's contest is set for 1 p.m. The series finale is scheduled for 12 p.m., with all games airing on B1G+.
WORLD'S LARGEST SOFTBALL TAILGATE
A tradition unlike any other, the annual World's Largest Softball Tailgate is back for its 20th installment on Saturday. What started out as an idea to give fans a chance to fire up their grills, pull out their coolers and enjoy their tailgating rituals during the spring has become one of the most popular and beloved spring traditions in the Champaign-Urbana community. The first 250 fans in attendance on Saturday will receive a commemorative T-shirt.
SCOUTING THE HAWKEYES
Iowa enters the series at 16-27 on the year and 4-16 in Big Ten play. The Hawkeyes have lost 15 straight games, including a 6-5 effort at Northern Iowa on Wednesday.
The team is batting .257 on the season, with Jena Young owning a squad-best 50 hits and four home runs. In the circle, Iowa posts a 3.33 ERA, with Jalen Adams seeing the bulk of the work. The pitcher boasts a 2.69 EA with four shutouts through 148.1 innings of work.
The all-time series between the teams favors Illinois, 30-26. The last time the programs met was in 2022, when Illinois took the series from the Hawkeyes.
LAST TIME OUT
Illinois spoiled Ohio State's senior day, taking the series finale with the Buckeyes, 11-6. Tori McQueen got the start, and the southpaw tossed 3.1 innings, allowed five runs on six hits, and fanned four. Lauren Wiles came on in relief, getting her first conference win by going 3.2 innings, giving up one run on three hits, allowing two walks and striking out one. Abby Ryniec led the Fighting Illini at the plate, going 3-for-4 with a double and two RBI. Sydney Malott went 2-for-4 at the plate, while Kelly Ryono tallied a 1-for-4 day with three RBI.
RYONO ON REPEAT
Kelly Ryono's double dinger day at DePaul on April 23 looked like déjà vu for the California native. The outfielder recorded the standout performance just two days shy of the one-year anniversary of the last time she hit a pair of homers in a game, which also happened against the Blue Demons. On April 25, 2023, Ryono tallied two solo home runs in the clash against DePaul at Eichelberger Field, helping Illinois to a 5-0 triumph in what was also the team's final non-conference game of the year. The performances are the only two-homer games of Ryono's collegiate career.
SUPER SLUGFEST
The Orange and Blue's 19-9 triumph over SIUE proved to be a historic night for the Fighting Illini program. The Illini's 19 runs scored are tied for fifth in the record books, and the team's 20 hits tied the record for most hits in a game. With six doubles in the six-inning victory, Illinois also set a new program record. The squad's 35 total bases ranked second in the record books.
Individually, Kelly Ryono's three doubles tied the most by a single player in a single game. The three homers by Paige Berkmeyer were the most hit in a single game by a single player, and the junior's 12 total bases were also a new program record. With seven RBI, the Ohio native tied the program record for a single game.
LIGHTNING MCQUEEN
Tori McQueen has been stellar during her senior campaign. So far, the southpaw has toss 155.1 innings over the course of 34 games. The Indiana native boasts 14 complete games, two individual shutouts, one combined shutout, two saves and 151 strikeouts during the 2024 slate. With a 4.58 strikeout-to-walk ratio, McQueen ranks second in the conference and 33rd nationally.
Over the course of her career, McQueen has tallied 361 punchouts, putting the pitcher tied for sixth all-time in the Illini record books. During her senior campaign, McQueen has tallied double-digit strikeouts on four separate occasions. When the southpaw fanned 14 batters against St. Thomas, McQueen etched her name in the history books, yet again, for the fourth-most strikeouts in a single contest.
BREAKOUT BERKMEYER
Paige Berkmeyer has had a breakout junior campaign, so far, in 2024. The Ohio native currently leads the Illini in RBI (35).
Against SIUE, Berkmeyer etched her name among the Illini greats in the softball record book. The junior fired off three home runs in the team's 19-9 victory over SIUE, marking a first for any Illinois player. Berkmeyer's 12 total bases were also a new record, while her seven RBI tied for the most by a single player. She is one of just 21 players to tally three homers in a game this season.
The catcher has been also solid behind the plate this season for the Fighting Illini defense. Berkmeyer has caught 16 runners stealing this year, which leads the league and ranks third nationally. The mark currently puts the catcher sixth all-time in the Illini record books for a single season.
RYONO IN THE RECORD BOOKS
While Kelly Ryono's five-year career in the Orange and Blue comes to an end in 2024, the outfielder has etched her name in the program's record books. Already, Ryono ranks in the top-10 for doubles in a single season with 16 two-baggers. The California native boasts 28 career home runs, putting her tied for ninth all-time. Ryono's 44 doubles put her sixth all-time at Illinois, and her 129 career RBI places 10th in program history.
THE 200 CLUB
Two Illini reached their 200th career hit this season, with captains Megan Ward and Kelly Ryono recording the milestone mark. Ward recorded the hit against Minnesota on March 29, while Ryono posted her 200th career hit against Michigan State on April 20.
This is the second straight season the Fighting Illini have had a player reach the milestone, as Avrey Steiner did in 2022, closing out her career with 231.
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.
COMING HOME
The Purple and Gold Challenge served as a homecoming for Fighting Illini head softball coach Tyra Perry. A 1997 and 1998 graduate of LSU, Perry earned a bachelor's degree in kinesiology in 1997 and added a master's degree in sports administration in 1998. The Illini's leader became a two-year letterwinner for the Tigers (1997-98), helping the program post a combined 102-28 record over her career, including a 58-14 mark in Southeastern Conference play. She also helped the Tigers pick up a pair of SEC West Division titles and make the program's first-ever NCAA Regional Tournament appearance, in which LSU finished second.
In her first season at LSU, Perry led the Tigers with a .345 batting average, 11 home runs, 40 runs scored, .416 on-base percentage and .612 slugging percentage. Those numbers helped her earn recognition on the National Fastpitch Coaches Association All-South Region Second Team, as well as First-Team All-Louisiana honors and a spot on the SEC's All-Tournament Team. Perry led the team with five homers in 1998 while posting a .324 average with 29 runs scored and 38 RBI. Off the field, she was twice named to the SEC Academic Honor Roll.
The Illini's non-conference finale at DePaul sends Illini assistant coach Kirsten Verdun back to her alma mater. Verdun was a two-time All-American (2012 and 2014) and helped DePaul to two NCAA regional final appearances and the 2014 BIG EAST Conference regular-season and tournament titles. She was named the 2014 BIG EAST Pitcher of the Year in addition to being named the Most Outstanding Player of the BIG EAST Championship. The star-studded pitcher became the first pitcher in program history to accumulate 900 innings with more than 900 strikeouts and 100 or more wins. She currently holds the Blue Demons' school record for career starts, strikeouts looking and batters faced, while finishing second in the record books in wins, strikeouts, innings pitched, appearances and complete games. The four-time all-conference and all-Great Lakes Region selection was a double threat in the circle and at the plate. Verdun, who held a .347 career batting average, knocked out 37 home runs and ranks second in DePaul's record books. She holds the record for most career walks with 156.
SWINGING IN THE RAIN
Illinois softball has seen eight games canceled due to weather, so far, this season. The Fighting Illini's Saturday slate against Auburn and Belmont at the Tiger Invitational was called off 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 canceled. The team's first Big Ten series finale at Nebraska was also called off due to rain. Inclement weather in the forecast for the Illini's doubleheader against Indiana State forced to team to cancel that twinbill.
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.
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.
Additionally, the team participated in a community service event prior to the Maryland series. While on the road, the team assisted with the Special Olympics Maryland, making time before the series opener with the Terps.
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.
