| Games 48-50 |
vs. Penn State| Eichelberger Field, Urbana, Ill. |
| Game Schedule (CT): |
- Friday, April 24 | 5PM CT | MVP Night, FamILLy Friday
- Saturday, April 25 | 1PM CT | World's Largest Softball Tailgate and Senior Day
- Sunday, April 26 | Noon CT | Challenger League Game
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| Game Promotions: |
Friday, MVP Night and FamILLy Friday: Join us in celebrating the Most Valuable Professors who teach and lead our student-athletes in the classroom.
Saturday, World's Largest Softball Tailgate and Senior Day:
Join us for live music, inflatables, food trucks, and more at the 22nd Annual World's Largest Softball Tailgate from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. pregame. The first 250 fans will receive a 2026 WLST T-shirt!
Sunday, Challenger League Game: Fighting Illini Softball welcomes the Tom Jones Challenger League. The Tom Jones Challenger League works with children of all ages, who have various physical and mental disabilities, to provide a safe environment for kids to enjoy themselves through sport.
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| Television: |
Friday (B1G+) | Saturday (Big Ten Network) | Sunday (B1G+) |
| Live Stats: |
Friday | Saturday | Sunday (StatBroadcast) |
| Social Media: |
Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | YouTube |
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Illinois softball hosts Penn State for its final home conference series, April 24-26. First times are slated for 5 p.m. CT Friday, 1 p.m. CT Saturday, and noon CT on Sunday. Saturday's game will air on Big Ten Network with Lisa Byington and Jennie Ritter on the call, while the other two contests can be streamed on B1G+.
All fans are invited to the World's Largest Softball Tailgate prior to Saturday's game, from 11 to 1 p.m. outside Eichelberger Field. The tailgate will have live music, food trucks, inflatables, and more. Saturday will also serve as the program's Senior Day, to recognize the contributions of Reese Hunkins, Gabrielle Debevec, Christina Crawford, Karley Yergler, and Alaina Miller to the Fighting Illini program.
WORLD'S LARGEST SOFTBALL TAILGATE HISTORY
The World's Largest Softball Tailgate (WLST) was first held on April 24, 2004, when a then-record crowd of 756 fans watched Illinois top Ohio State, 1-0, at Eichelberger Field. The idea originated within the Division of Intercollegiate Athletics, to give fans a chance to enjoy their tailgating rituals during the spring sports season. Since 2004, the tailgate has continued to grow and shatter Illinois softball attendance records. In its first four years, from 2004 to 2007, the crowd nearly doubled, with 1,445 fans attending in 2007. Penn State is no stranger to the annual event, with Illinois defeating the Nittany Lions in a WLST doubleheader in 2012. In 2022, a record crowd of 1,530 attended the tailgate and watched the Nittany Lions narrowly defeat the Fighting Illini, 2-0.
LAST TIME OUT
Illinois defeated Indiana State, 9-5, on Tuesday evening at Eichelberger Field. True freshman Brooke Stang was 2-for-2 at the plate with a pair of walks, her third consecutive outing with two walks. Eileen Donahue and Keirys Click each tallied a home run in the victory, while Megan Nuechterlein and Danika Frazier combined for the win from the circle. The victory was Nuechterlein's tenth start and third win of the year, while Frazier notched her first career save.
In its last Big Ten conference series, Illinois emerged victorious in one of three games at Maryland. In the April 18 victory, Skylar Brennan recorded three hits and Jackie Yeager and Ava Moore each tallied two, including a two-score homer for Yeager. Nuechterlein got the start in the circle and Abby Sabalaskey entered in relief, picking up the win after Illinois' seventh inning comeback. Sabalaskey improved to 7-7 on the season, allowing no hits and no runs in the final 1.2 frames.
MILESTONE MARKS
Head coach Tyra Perry achieved her 700th career win as a head coach, over Providence on Saturday, February 21, in Raleigh, N.C. Perry also recently achieved 300 victories at the helm of Illinois on Tuesday, April 21, with a 9-5 victory over Indiana State at Eichelberger Field.
KEIRYS KNOWLEDGE
Sophomore Keirys Click has been hit by pitch ten times this season, which ranks fourth in the Big Ten Conference and 48th nationally. She is now tied for ninth in single-season program history, alongside Jaelyn Vickery, who was hit by pitch ten times in 2021.
Click also owns the program's lone grand slam of the season, which she tallied on March 13 against Iowa at home. It was the first grand slam of her career and helped propel her to third on the squad in home runs this year, with six.
NEW FACES IN THE CROWD
Nine players have made their debut in the Orange and Blue this season, including junior college transfer Skylar Brennan, who leads the team in batting average (.343), hits (47), doubles (8), walks (16), and on-base percentage (.420). Brennan's 13 multi-hit games also lead the team.
True freshmen Ady Kiddy and Brooke Stang have also earned their way into the lineup. Stang has started in left field the last three games, tallying four hits, three runs, and six walks. Kiddy has made 22 total starts, primarily at second base, owning 16 hits, 14 runs and 7 RBI on the year.
DONAHUE DINGERS
Eileen Donahue has put her power on display at the plate, typically starting as the designated player. She leads the squad with 34 RBI, 11 home runs, and a .622 slugging percentage. Her nine multi-RBI games are the most on the team, and she has recorded three multi-homer outings on the year.
IN THE CIRCLE
Senior and Mahomet, Illinois, native Karley Yergler has seen the most work in the circle, owning a 4.76 ERA and 1.70 WHIP through 100 innings of work. Yergler also owns the most strikeouts on staff, with 54. Just behind her with a 4.81 ERA in 84.1 frames is freshman left-hander Abby Sabalaskey, who owns the best record of the pitching staff at 7-7. Megan Nuechterlein and Danika Frazier have also made significant impacts as of late, with Nuechterlein picking up all three of her victories this season in the month of April.
OPPONENT SCOUT
The Nittany Lions in the middle of the Big Ten pack, at 29-17 overall and 8-10 in conference play. In its last weekend series, Penn State won one of three games against Ohio State at Buckeye Field. In the victory, freshman third baseman Allison Oneacre cemented her place as the Penn State single-season RBI record holder, notching her 55th RBI of the season in the sixth inning. Oneacre owns team-highs in batting average (.385), OPS (1.361), home runs (16), slugging percentage (.846), walks (35), and on-base percentage (.514). The Nittany Lions are tied for third in the conference with 51 stolen bases, led by 13 from Breanna Hanik, and ten each from Michela Barbanente and Kaylie Walters.
All five members of the Penn State pitching staff have seen meaningful time in the circle, with McKenna Young, Abigail Britton, and Mackenzie Duncan each owning ERAs under four. Duncan leads the way with 67 strikeouts, though all five pitchers have at least 40.
SERIES HISTORY
- Illinois holds the all-time series advantage, 30-18.
- The first meeting between the sides was a 7-0 home victory for the Nittany Lions, on April 7, 2001.
- The first contest played at Eichelberger Field was a 6-0 Fighting Illini victory, on April 5, 2003.
- Illinois is 13-5 all-time at home against Penn State.
- Penn State has emerged victorious in four of the last five meetings, including sweeping the most recent pair of games on April 29, 2023, in University Park.
- Current Illinois senior Alaina Miller pinch ran in game two of the 2023 twinbill.
UP NEXT
Illinois hosts its final home game of the season on Wednesday, April 29, at 5 p.m. CT against Valparaiso. The Fighting Illini conclude the regular season with one final Big Ten series at Indiana, May 1-3.
