Northwestern University Athletics
Saturday, April 5
Evanston, Ill.
2 pm CT
Northwestern
vs
Illinois
Photo by: Ryan Kuttler/Northwestern Athletics
Wildcats Host Illinois for In-State Rivalry Weekend Series
4/4/2025 6:48:00 PM | Softball
EVANSTON, Ill. – Northwestern continues its eight-game homestand this weekend in a new Saturday-Sunday-Monday series format as the Wildcats play host to in-state foe Illinois.
The Wildcats and Fighting Illini are currently slated to face off on Saturday and Sunday at 2 pm CT, followed by the series finale on Monday at 4 pm CT. Both weekend games will be streamed on B1G+, while Monday's game will be broadcast live on Big Ten Network with Northwestern alums Lisa Byington (play-by-play) and Sydney Supple (analyst) on the call.
Northwestern currently sits atop the Big Ten standings at 7-0 on the year, the only remaining unbeaten team in the conference. This marks the best start to conference play for the 'Cats since the 2021 season, when they opened 9-0. The last time Northwestern started 10-0 or better to open a Big Ten season was in 2019, when the Wildcats won their first 20 games in a row to open conference play.
The Wildcats have now won 19-consecutive Big Ten series, dating back to the start of the 2023 season. Over the past three seasons, the Wildcats boast an .867 winning percentage (65-10) in Big Ten play. Additionally, Kate and Caryl Drohan enter this weekend with 798 career wins, just two shy of becoming the fourth coaches in Big Ten history to reach 800 career wins (Carol Hutchins, Gayle Blevins and Rhonda Revelle). The Drohan's would be the 30th active Division I coaches to reach 800+ wins, as well as one of just 18 active coaches with 800+ wins at one school.
Most recently, Northwestern hosted Notre Dame for a midweek matchup and tied the Irish, 10-10, after the Wildcats overcame an 8-1 deficit and scored six unanswered runs in the final two innings, capped off by a two-out, two-strike grand slam by Kansas Robinson to even the game up in the bottom of the seventh inning. The game was then called due to darkness, resulting in just the fifth tie in program history and the first for NU since Feb. 17, 2002 (Kate Drohan's 10th-ever game as a head coach).
Robinson finished Tuesday's game going 4-for-4 with a walk, a homer, six RBI and two runs scored. It tied a career high for Robinson in both hits (4) and RBI (6), having previously recorded a four-hit performance earlier this season vs. UT Arlington on Feb. 16 and driving in six RBI during her rookie season against Nebraska on April 28, 2023. Over the last three games alone, Robinson is hitting .818 (9-for-11) with 12 RBI, two doubles, two home runs and four runs scored, raising her batting average on the season from .217 up to .275 entering this weekend.
The Wildcats also saw multi-hit efforts against Notre Dame from Kelsey Nader (2-for-4, three runs scored), Kaylie Avvisato (2-for-5, two runs scored), Emma Raye (2-for-3 with an RBI and a run scored) and Lauren Sciborski (2-for-2 with an RBI). In total, the 'Cats combined for 15 hits on the heels of a season-best 18 hits in their game prior in a 14-3 run-rule victory at Minnesota on March 29. Over its last five games, during which the team is 4-0-1, Northwestern is hitting .378 (54-for-143) with a .552 slugging percentage and .441 on-base percentage, while limiting opponents to a combined .205 bating average against (25-for-122).
Emma Blea tossed the final 3.0 innings in Tuesday's draw vs. Notre Dame, retiring all nine batters she faced while recording two strikeouts. Blea now holds a 2.17 ERA (3 ER/9.2 IP) in her last four appearances, having also picked up her first-career win last Wednesday vs. Northern Illinois while striking out a career-high six batters.
Blea was one of four different Wildcat pitchers to earn a win last week. Lauren Boyd tossed a complete game shutout to open the Minnesota series, allowing just three hits and one walk while striking out 10 in a 2-0 victory in what marked the second double-digit strikeout performance of the season for Boyd, as well as her first complete game shutout since April 2, 2023 at Iowa. Riley Grudzielanek allowed just three hits and two runs in a complete game performance on Friday, throwing six-straight scoreless innings to finish the game and improve to 4-0 in four Big Ten appearances this season with a team-best 1.78 ERA (5 ER/19.2 IP). On Saturday, Signe Dohse and Renae Cunningham split the workload against the Gophers, each tossing 3.0 innings as Dohse struck out a career-high four batters and allowed just two hits and one run, while Cunningham earned the win and allowed just two hits and two runs to finish out the game.
Four different Wildcats currently hold a batting average above .400 through the first seven games of conference play, led by the first-year Avvisato who is hitting .464 (13-for-28) with a team-leading 10 RBI. Avvisato currently leads the team with 11 multi-hit games this season and also leads the team with 15 stolen bases and a .404 batting average on the year. The last Wildcat to hit above .400 in a season was Marisa Bast in 2012, a season in which she was named an NFCA Third Team All-American. Avvisato's 15 stolen bases have already surpassed the total from any NU player from the 2024 season, she is looking to become the first Wildcat rookie to steal 20+ bases in a season since Rachel Lewis stole 24 in 2018, a season in which she was named an NFCA Second Team All-American.
Emma Raye is hitting .435 (10-for-23) in conference play to go along with an .826 slugging percentage and a .500 on-base percentage. Since the start of March (last 14 games), Raye has raised her batting average from .179 up to .301 on the season. Similarly, Nader is hitting .429 (9-for-21) in conference play and has seen her average on the season jump from .214 up to .352 (second-best on the team) over the last four weekends of action. Last season, Nader led the Wildcats in Big Ten play with a .473 batting average (35-for-74) as well as a team-best 20 RBI and 22 runs scored.
First-year Avery Garden enters the weekend on a career-long five-game hitting streak and is hitting .429 (9-for-21) through seven conference games to go along with six RBI and nine runs scored. Garden hit the eventual game-winning home run with a solo blast in the fifth inning of last Friday's 3-2 win over Minnesota to close out a doubleheader sweep. She is hitting .400 (6-for-15) with a 1.038 OPS during her recent five-game hitting streak.
Bridget Donahey, who had never recorded a three-hit game in 113 career games played entering last week, turned in two separate three-hit performances across four games. Donahey led the Wildcats in those four games, hitting .636 (7-for-11) with two doubles, two homers, eight RBI and four runs scored, good for a 1.979 OPS. Donahey currently leads the team this season with six home runs, 17 walks, a .639 slugging percentage and a 1.087 OPS.
Hitting from the leadoff spot, Grace Nieto is on-pace to post career numbers at the plate. Nieto, who hit .324 on her way to earning All-Big Ten Freshman Team honors as a starter on Northwestern's Women's College World Series team in 2022, is hitting .344 (32-for-93) on the season with 10 RBI and 18 runs scored. Since she moved into the leadoff spot on February 23 vs. Cal, Nieto has recorded a hit in 14-of-17 games and is hitting .339 in that stretch. Nieto also leads the team this season with a .478 batting average (11-for-23) with runners in scoring position.
Northwestern leads the all-time series vs. Illinois, 37-16, having won the last four matchups by a combined 30-2 margin. The last time the Wildcats and Illini faced off in a weekend series was during the Big Ten-only 2021 season, when the teams split a four-game set in Evanston.
Following this weekend, Northwestern continues its homestand at The J with a three-games series vs. No. 21 Nebraska in a similar Saturday-Sunday-Monday format.
The Wildcats and Fighting Illini are currently slated to face off on Saturday and Sunday at 2 pm CT, followed by the series finale on Monday at 4 pm CT. Both weekend games will be streamed on B1G+, while Monday's game will be broadcast live on Big Ten Network with Northwestern alums Lisa Byington (play-by-play) and Sydney Supple (analyst) on the call.
Northwestern currently sits atop the Big Ten standings at 7-0 on the year, the only remaining unbeaten team in the conference. This marks the best start to conference play for the 'Cats since the 2021 season, when they opened 9-0. The last time Northwestern started 10-0 or better to open a Big Ten season was in 2019, when the Wildcats won their first 20 games in a row to open conference play.
The Wildcats have now won 19-consecutive Big Ten series, dating back to the start of the 2023 season. Over the past three seasons, the Wildcats boast an .867 winning percentage (65-10) in Big Ten play. Additionally, Kate and Caryl Drohan enter this weekend with 798 career wins, just two shy of becoming the fourth coaches in Big Ten history to reach 800 career wins (Carol Hutchins, Gayle Blevins and Rhonda Revelle). The Drohan's would be the 30th active Division I coaches to reach 800+ wins, as well as one of just 18 active coaches with 800+ wins at one school.
Most recently, Northwestern hosted Notre Dame for a midweek matchup and tied the Irish, 10-10, after the Wildcats overcame an 8-1 deficit and scored six unanswered runs in the final two innings, capped off by a two-out, two-strike grand slam by Kansas Robinson to even the game up in the bottom of the seventh inning. The game was then called due to darkness, resulting in just the fifth tie in program history and the first for NU since Feb. 17, 2002 (Kate Drohan's 10th-ever game as a head coach).
Robinson finished Tuesday's game going 4-for-4 with a walk, a homer, six RBI and two runs scored. It tied a career high for Robinson in both hits (4) and RBI (6), having previously recorded a four-hit performance earlier this season vs. UT Arlington on Feb. 16 and driving in six RBI during her rookie season against Nebraska on April 28, 2023. Over the last three games alone, Robinson is hitting .818 (9-for-11) with 12 RBI, two doubles, two home runs and four runs scored, raising her batting average on the season from .217 up to .275 entering this weekend.
The Wildcats also saw multi-hit efforts against Notre Dame from Kelsey Nader (2-for-4, three runs scored), Kaylie Avvisato (2-for-5, two runs scored), Emma Raye (2-for-3 with an RBI and a run scored) and Lauren Sciborski (2-for-2 with an RBI). In total, the 'Cats combined for 15 hits on the heels of a season-best 18 hits in their game prior in a 14-3 run-rule victory at Minnesota on March 29. Over its last five games, during which the team is 4-0-1, Northwestern is hitting .378 (54-for-143) with a .552 slugging percentage and .441 on-base percentage, while limiting opponents to a combined .205 bating average against (25-for-122).
Emma Blea tossed the final 3.0 innings in Tuesday's draw vs. Notre Dame, retiring all nine batters she faced while recording two strikeouts. Blea now holds a 2.17 ERA (3 ER/9.2 IP) in her last four appearances, having also picked up her first-career win last Wednesday vs. Northern Illinois while striking out a career-high six batters.
Blea was one of four different Wildcat pitchers to earn a win last week. Lauren Boyd tossed a complete game shutout to open the Minnesota series, allowing just three hits and one walk while striking out 10 in a 2-0 victory in what marked the second double-digit strikeout performance of the season for Boyd, as well as her first complete game shutout since April 2, 2023 at Iowa. Riley Grudzielanek allowed just three hits and two runs in a complete game performance on Friday, throwing six-straight scoreless innings to finish the game and improve to 4-0 in four Big Ten appearances this season with a team-best 1.78 ERA (5 ER/19.2 IP). On Saturday, Signe Dohse and Renae Cunningham split the workload against the Gophers, each tossing 3.0 innings as Dohse struck out a career-high four batters and allowed just two hits and one run, while Cunningham earned the win and allowed just two hits and two runs to finish out the game.
Four different Wildcats currently hold a batting average above .400 through the first seven games of conference play, led by the first-year Avvisato who is hitting .464 (13-for-28) with a team-leading 10 RBI. Avvisato currently leads the team with 11 multi-hit games this season and also leads the team with 15 stolen bases and a .404 batting average on the year. The last Wildcat to hit above .400 in a season was Marisa Bast in 2012, a season in which she was named an NFCA Third Team All-American. Avvisato's 15 stolen bases have already surpassed the total from any NU player from the 2024 season, she is looking to become the first Wildcat rookie to steal 20+ bases in a season since Rachel Lewis stole 24 in 2018, a season in which she was named an NFCA Second Team All-American.
Emma Raye is hitting .435 (10-for-23) in conference play to go along with an .826 slugging percentage and a .500 on-base percentage. Since the start of March (last 14 games), Raye has raised her batting average from .179 up to .301 on the season. Similarly, Nader is hitting .429 (9-for-21) in conference play and has seen her average on the season jump from .214 up to .352 (second-best on the team) over the last four weekends of action. Last season, Nader led the Wildcats in Big Ten play with a .473 batting average (35-for-74) as well as a team-best 20 RBI and 22 runs scored.
First-year Avery Garden enters the weekend on a career-long five-game hitting streak and is hitting .429 (9-for-21) through seven conference games to go along with six RBI and nine runs scored. Garden hit the eventual game-winning home run with a solo blast in the fifth inning of last Friday's 3-2 win over Minnesota to close out a doubleheader sweep. She is hitting .400 (6-for-15) with a 1.038 OPS during her recent five-game hitting streak.
Bridget Donahey, who had never recorded a three-hit game in 113 career games played entering last week, turned in two separate three-hit performances across four games. Donahey led the Wildcats in those four games, hitting .636 (7-for-11) with two doubles, two homers, eight RBI and four runs scored, good for a 1.979 OPS. Donahey currently leads the team this season with six home runs, 17 walks, a .639 slugging percentage and a 1.087 OPS.
Hitting from the leadoff spot, Grace Nieto is on-pace to post career numbers at the plate. Nieto, who hit .324 on her way to earning All-Big Ten Freshman Team honors as a starter on Northwestern's Women's College World Series team in 2022, is hitting .344 (32-for-93) on the season with 10 RBI and 18 runs scored. Since she moved into the leadoff spot on February 23 vs. Cal, Nieto has recorded a hit in 14-of-17 games and is hitting .339 in that stretch. Nieto also leads the team this season with a .478 batting average (11-for-23) with runners in scoring position.
Northwestern leads the all-time series vs. Illinois, 37-16, having won the last four matchups by a combined 30-2 margin. The last time the Wildcats and Illini faced off in a weekend series was during the Big Ten-only 2021 season, when the teams split a four-game set in Evanston.
Following this weekend, Northwestern continues its homestand at The J with a three-games series vs. No. 21 Nebraska in a similar Saturday-Sunday-Monday format.
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P/1B
/ SoftballSoftball - 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
