CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Illinois softball head coach Tyra Perry announced the schedule for the upcoming 2025 season on Tuesday.
The Fighting Illini's slate includes 54 games, including 20 at Eichelberger Field. The team will face off against eight programs that made the 2024 NCAA Tournament.
Illinois opens the 2025 campaign in Orlando. Fla., as the team battles CSU Bakersfield, Georgia and the host UCF Knights from Feb. 7-9. The following weekend, the squad heads to Nashville for a tournament hosted by Tennessee State, with Stony Brook, Mercer and Quinnipiac also in attendance.
NC State welcomes the Illini for a tournament Feb. 21-23. The Orange and Blue will battle Northern Colorado, Central Michigan and the host Wolfpack in Raleigh, N.C. The final non-conference tournament for the Fighting Illini takes place at Arkansas, where Illinois takes on Missouri State, Iowa and the host Razorbacks from Feb. 28-March 1.
The Orange and Blue open the home slate with a contest against Saint Louis on March 7. Battles against Indiana State and Illinois State on March 11 and March 12, respectively, follow at Eichelberger Field.
Big Ten play begins at home with a three-day series against Wisconsin March 14-16. The last meeting between the programs took place at Eichelberger Field as part of the 2023 Big Ten Softball Tournament, with Illinois upsetting the fifth-seeded Badgers, 8-4.
The team hits the road for contests against Missouri (March 18) and a series at Oregon (March 21-23). The series with the Ducks will be just the third-ever meeting between the programs and the first to count as conference clashes.
UNI comes to town on March 25 before the Illini welcome Washington for a pair of conference contests on March 28-29. The last game of the homestand is slated for April 1 against Western Illinois.
Back-to-back league series are on deck, with the Orange and Blue heading to Northwestern from April 5-7 before hosting Michigan State on April 11-13.
After hosting Valparaiso on April 16, Illinois hits the road for a three-game series at Purdue from April 18-20. The squad returns home for midweek bouts against DePaul (April 22) and Northern Illinois (April 23) before hitting the road for Big Ten battles at Rutgers (April 25-27).
The final non-conference game takes place on April 30 at home against Eastern Illinois. The Illini close out the regular season with a series against Ohio State from May 2-4.
The 2025 campaign marks the 26th season of Illinois softball and head coach Tyra Perry's 23rd year of her career.
