Northwestern University Athletics
Wednesday, April 15
South Bend, Ind.
5 pm CT
Northwestern
at
Notre Dame
'Cats Ready for Midweek Matchup at Notre Dame
4/14/2026 7:02:00 PM | Softball
SOUTH BEND, Ind. – Northwestern faces off with Notre Dame for a midweek matchup on the road on Wednesday. First pitch is scheduled for 5 p.m. CT, with the game broadcast live on ACC Network.
Northwestern and Notre Dame have matched up 27 times in their history, with the Wildcats holding the all time edge at 16-11-1. Most recently, the teams tied 10-10 in Evanston after Kansas Robinson blasted a two-strike, two-out grand slam to tie the game in the seventh inning.
This past weekend, Northwestern earned a sweep on the road at Penn State as the Wildcats extended their streak of victories over the Nittany Lions to 19, dating back to the 2011 season. The Wildcats outscored Penn State 38-9 over the weekend, picking up an 8-2 victory in Friday's contest before earning two run-rule victories, 13-4 in five innings on Saturday and 17-3 in six innings on Sunday.
Emma Raye led the 'Cats at the plate over the weekend en route to Big Ten Player of the Week honors, reaching base in 11-of-13 plate appearances (.846 OBP) while collecting six RBI, seven runs scored, two homers and three stolen bases.
During Friday's 8-2 win, Rate reached base four times and went 3-for-3 with a three-run home run in the fourth inning to go along with two runs scored. In Saturday's win, Raye went 3-for-4 with an RBI and two runs scored. She followed that up by reaching base four times in Sunday's victory, hitting a go-ahead two-run home run in the fourth inning while finishing 3-for-4 with a walk, three RBI, and two runs scored.
Kaylie Avvisato also turned in an explosive weekend, leading Northwestern with three homers and nine RBI while hitting .538 (7-for-13) with seven runs scored. Avvisato drove in multiple RBI in each game during the weekend series and posted a career performance in Sunday's finale, going 4-for-5 with four RBI and four runs scored in what marked the first multi-home run game of her career as well as single-game career highs in hits and runs scored. The sophomore is now riding a career-high 17-game reached base streak, during which she is hitting .441 (26-for-59) with 23 RBI and 25 runs scored.
Isabel Cunnea went 8-for-12 (.667 average) with seven RBI throughout the weekend in Happy Valley. Cunnea posted back-to-back multi-hit, multi- RBI efforts on Saturday and Sunday, going 3-for-4 with a double and three RBI on Saturday followed by another 3-for-4 showing with three RBI on Sunday. Cunnea is now hitting .343 (12-for-35) in conference play, the third-highest mark on the team behind Raye and Avvisato.
The Wildcats also saw consistent production throughout the weekend from their senior starters, as Grace Nieto drew a career-high four walks (tied for third-most in single-game program history) in Saturday's win and finished the weekend with a .692 on-base percentage and seven runs scored. Bridget Donahey posted a three-hit, three-run performance on Saturday, while Kansas Robinson went 2-for-4 with a homer, a double, four RBI and two runs scored on Sunday. Kelsey Nader finished the weekend with a .583 on-base percentage and now sits third on the team in batting average (.330) on the season.
With a win on Sunday Marina Mason improved to 10-8 in the circle on the season, becoming the first Wildcat rookie to win double-digit games in her first year since Danielle Williams (31) in 2019. Mason holds a team-leading 2.54 ERA (37 ER/102.0 IP) and a .187 opposing batting average on the year.
Following Wednesday's game Northwestern resumes Big Ten play, hosting Michigan State for three games at the Ballpark at Rosemont. The Wildcats and the Spartans will face off at 7 p.m. CT on Friday, 1 p.m. CT on Saturday, and close out the weekend at 6 p.m. CT on Sunday. All three games will air on B1G+.
Northwestern and Notre Dame have matched up 27 times in their history, with the Wildcats holding the all time edge at 16-11-1. Most recently, the teams tied 10-10 in Evanston after Kansas Robinson blasted a two-strike, two-out grand slam to tie the game in the seventh inning.
This past weekend, Northwestern earned a sweep on the road at Penn State as the Wildcats extended their streak of victories over the Nittany Lions to 19, dating back to the 2011 season. The Wildcats outscored Penn State 38-9 over the weekend, picking up an 8-2 victory in Friday's contest before earning two run-rule victories, 13-4 in five innings on Saturday and 17-3 in six innings on Sunday.
Emma Raye led the 'Cats at the plate over the weekend en route to Big Ten Player of the Week honors, reaching base in 11-of-13 plate appearances (.846 OBP) while collecting six RBI, seven runs scored, two homers and three stolen bases.
During Friday's 8-2 win, Rate reached base four times and went 3-for-3 with a three-run home run in the fourth inning to go along with two runs scored. In Saturday's win, Raye went 3-for-4 with an RBI and two runs scored. She followed that up by reaching base four times in Sunday's victory, hitting a go-ahead two-run home run in the fourth inning while finishing 3-for-4 with a walk, three RBI, and two runs scored.
Kaylie Avvisato also turned in an explosive weekend, leading Northwestern with three homers and nine RBI while hitting .538 (7-for-13) with seven runs scored. Avvisato drove in multiple RBI in each game during the weekend series and posted a career performance in Sunday's finale, going 4-for-5 with four RBI and four runs scored in what marked the first multi-home run game of her career as well as single-game career highs in hits and runs scored. The sophomore is now riding a career-high 17-game reached base streak, during which she is hitting .441 (26-for-59) with 23 RBI and 25 runs scored.
Isabel Cunnea went 8-for-12 (.667 average) with seven RBI throughout the weekend in Happy Valley. Cunnea posted back-to-back multi-hit, multi- RBI efforts on Saturday and Sunday, going 3-for-4 with a double and three RBI on Saturday followed by another 3-for-4 showing with three RBI on Sunday. Cunnea is now hitting .343 (12-for-35) in conference play, the third-highest mark on the team behind Raye and Avvisato.
The Wildcats also saw consistent production throughout the weekend from their senior starters, as Grace Nieto drew a career-high four walks (tied for third-most in single-game program history) in Saturday's win and finished the weekend with a .692 on-base percentage and seven runs scored. Bridget Donahey posted a three-hit, three-run performance on Saturday, while Kansas Robinson went 2-for-4 with a homer, a double, four RBI and two runs scored on Sunday. Kelsey Nader finished the weekend with a .583 on-base percentage and now sits third on the team in batting average (.330) on the season.
With a win on Sunday Marina Mason improved to 10-8 in the circle on the season, becoming the first Wildcat rookie to win double-digit games in her first year since Danielle Williams (31) in 2019. Mason holds a team-leading 2.54 ERA (37 ER/102.0 IP) and a .187 opposing batting average on the year.
Following Wednesday's game Northwestern resumes Big Ten play, hosting Michigan State for three games at the Ballpark at Rosemont. The Wildcats and the Spartans will face off at 7 p.m. CT on Friday, 1 p.m. CT on Saturday, and close out the weekend at 6 p.m. CT on Sunday. All three games will air on B1G+.
Players Mentioned
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/ SoftballSoftball - Wildcats Earn Series Sweep at Penn State with 17-3 Run-Rule (4/12/26)
Sunday, April 12
Softball - 'Cats Run-Rule Penn State, 13-4, Claim Series Victory (4/11/26)
Saturday, April 11
Softball - 'Cats Open Weekend at Penn State with 8-2 Win (4/10/26)
Friday, April 10
Softball - Marina Mason Tosses Complete Game Shutout, 'Cats Earn Game One Win vs. Michigan (4/3/26)
Saturday, April 04
