Wednesday, March 28
Urbana, IL
3 p.m. CT
Northwestern
at
Illinois
Photo by: Stephen J. Carrera
Northwestern Hits Road For BTN Doubleheader At Illinois
3/26/2018 4:27:00 PM | Softball
| NORTHWESTERN SOFTBALL: The Week Ahead | ||||||
| DATE | OPPONENT | TIME | LOCATION | COVERAGE | LIVE STATS | |
| Wednesday, March 28 |
Illinois | 3 p.m. CT | Eichelberger Field Champaign, lll. |
BTN TV BTN2Go Stream |
Live Stats | |
| Wednesday, March 28 |
Illinois | 5 p.m. CT | Eichelberger Field Champaign, lll. |
BTN TV BTN2Go Stream |
Live Stats | |
| Friday, March 30 | Nebraska | 3 p.m. CT | Drysdale Field Evanston, lll. |
BTN Plus Stream | Live Stats | |
| Saturday, March 31 | Nebraska | 1 p.m. CT | Drysdale Field Evanston, lll. |
BTN Plus Stream | Live Stats | |
| Sunday, April 1 | Nebraska | Noon CT | Drysdale Field Evanston, lll. |
BTN Plus Stream | Live Stats | |
| Social: Twitter (@NUSBCats and @NU_SportsLive) | Instagram (nusbcats) | Facebook Game Notes: Northwestern | TICKETS |
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EVANSTON, Ill. -- Following one of the more wild and entertaining home series in some time, Northwestern jumps right back into Big Ten action with a March 28 doubleheader against Illinois in Champaign. The games begin at 3 p.m. CT and will be broadcast live on BTN.
The Wildcats are coming off a 2-1 series victory over defending Big Ten champion Minnesota at Sharon J. Drysdale Field. In each of the first two games, NU trailed by two runs entering the bottom of the seventh only to come back and win both times. On Friday, the Wildcats plated three runs in the seventh for a 3-2 victory while Saturday NU erased a 9-7 deficit with a pair of runs before eventually coming out on top, 11-10, in eight frames.
Sunday's loss in the series snapped a 10-game winning streak for Northwestern dating to a March 4 shutout of then-No. 11 Alabama. The winning streak was the Wildcats' longest since a 12-gamer in 2009.
The series was part of a bonkers opening weekend in the Big Ten that saw Indiana sweep 18th-ranked Ohio State to stand alone atop the conference standings with a 3-0 record. The Hoosiers entered Big Ten play with just seven wins against 21 losses, two of which came at the hands of the Wildcats in pre-conference action.
Illinois dropped one game in its three-game set against Purdue, leaving it with a 2-1 record that puts the Fighting Illini alongside Northwestern, Nebraska and Maryland in the league standings after one weekend of play.
Northwestern senior Sabrina Rabin is heating up at the right time for the Wildcats, batting .700 (7-for-10) in the three-game set against Minnesota to raise her season average to .398. The three-time All-Big Ten selection and 2015 Big Ten Freshman of the Year ranks among the national leaders in steals per game (30th) and total hits (44th) entering this week's action.
On the other end of the seniority spectrum, first-year Rachel Lewis continued to pound the cover off the ball against Minnesota, slugging 1.000 and driving in four more runs. She leads the Big Ten with 33 RBIs and ranks nationally in total home runs, total RBIs and RBIs per game.
Senior Brooke Marquez's hot recent stretch continued versus the Gophers, as well. She added three more hits including a home run to her total, and now is batting .385 in the Wildcats last 10 games.
After the Wildcats face the Illini, they return home to Sharon J. Drysdale Field to host Nebraska March 30-April 1.
NORTHWESTERN SOFTBALL HOME TICKETS ARE ON SALE NOW!
In addition to Nebraska (RPI No. 21), Ohio State (RPI No. 33 ) and Iowa (No. 47) both travel to Evanston this season, giving NU its best home schedule in recent memory. Season passes are still available!
PROGRAMMING NOTE
Below is a coverage schedule for the remainder of the season. In addition to this coverage, EVERY GAME will have live stats and live tweets at NUsports.com and @NUSBCats on Twitter.
ILLINOIS DOUBLEHEADER (March 28)
Both games will be televised live on BTN and BTN2Go
NEBRASKA SERIES (March 20-April 1)
All games will be streamed on BTN Plus on BTN2Go. For BTN Plus on BTN2Go, Cost is $9.95 for a monthly pass for Northwestern games.
PURDUE SERIES (April 6-8)
All games will be streamed on BTN Plus on BTN2Go
OHIO STATE SERIES (April 13-15)
April 13 will be televised live on BTN and BTN2Go.
April 14-15 will be streamed on BTN Plus on BTN2Go
RUTGERS SERIES (April 20-22)
All games will be streamed on BTN Plus on BTN2Go
IOWA SERIES (April 27-29)
All games will be streamed on BTN Plus on BTN2Go
WISCONSIN SERIES (May 4-6)
All games will be streamed on BTN Plus on BTN2Go
NON-CONFERENCE GAMES
Both home games will be streamed on BTN Plus on BTN2Go. Both away games will have Studio N audio, which is a subscription product. Cost is $3.95 for a 24-hour pass.
PLAY BALL!
For a complete season preview and notes on Wednesday's Illinois doubleheader, download our Game Notes available here and in the chart at the top of this page.
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Players Mentioned
Softball - Lauren Boyd Tosses Complete Game Shutout, 'Cats Blank Kentucky in NCAA Regional (5/16/25)
Friday, May 16
Softball - 'Cats Storm Back, Secure Series Victory at No. 8 UCLA (5/4/25)
Sunday, May 04
Softball - 'Cats Earn 8-0 Run-Rule Win at No. 8 UCLA (5/2/25)
Saturday, May 03
Softball - Kaylie Avvisato Hits Walk-Off Home Run, 'Cats Take Series vs. Wisconsin (4/27/25)
Sunday, April 27
