Indiana University
University of Illinois - Chicago
IU Opens Home Play in the Hoosier Classic
3/15/2018 12:27:00 PM | Softball
Admission to all home games is free of charge. Indiana's contests will also be carried on BTN Plus via BTN2Go.
WEEKEND AT A GLANCE
Friday, March 16
3 p.m. vs. UIC
5:30 p.m. vs. Green Bay
Saturday, March 17
3 p.m. vs. Northwestern
Sunday, March 18
11 a.m. vs. Green Bay
1 p.m. vs. UIC
SCOUTING THE COMPETITION
UIC: The Flames are off to a 10-4 start, having nine total games cancelled this year due to weather. UIC is currently riding a six-game winning streak and swept the competition at last weekend's Racer Classic in Murray, Ky. Lexi Watts is pacing the offense with a .444 average, 20 hits, 11 runs and 12 stolen bases. The team has an impressive ERA of 1.62 and has mainly relied on Allie Trudeau (1.93 ERA, 4-2, 36.1 IP), Karissa Frazier (1.75 ERA, 4-1, 32.0 IP) and Marley Hanlon (1.29 ERA, 1-1, 21.2 IP).
The Hoosiers hold a 15-8 series advantage against the Flames. The two teams split last year's meeting in the Hoosier Classic, which was capped by a complete game shutout from IU pitcher Tara Trainer in Indiana's 4-0 win.
Green Bay: The Phoenix currently sit at 2-12 with a pair of wins against UMKC. Chyanne Onstad leads the offense with a .349 average, 15 hits, 8 RBI and 5 runs. Kayla Schwebke (4.68 ERA, 1-6, 43.1 IP) and Elizabeth Pautz (5.75 ERA, 1-4, 24.1 IP) have carried most of the innings in the circle.
Indiana and Green Bay have played just twice before with the Hoosiers coming away with a pair of victories in 1993.
Northwestern: For the second time this season, the Hoosiers will play a non-conference game against the Wildcats, having met in the season-opening Kajikawa Classic. Northwestern is 15-8 on the year, highlighted by a March 4 shutout win against No. 11 Alabama. The Wildcats come in to the weekend winners of six straight, including a five-game sweep of the Houston Hilton Plaza Classic last week. The team is batting .275, led by a .369 average, 31 hits and 21 runs from Sabrina Rabin. Rachel Lewis, who was named Big Ten Player of the Week Monday, has knocked six homers on the year with eight doubles for a team-leading 27 RBI. In the circle, Kenna Wilkey (2.84 ERA, 7-3, 61.2 IP) and Morgan Newport (2.43 ERA, 5-2, 46.0 IP) have carried most of the workload. Wilkey earned Big Ten Freshman of the Week honors Monday for the second straight week.
Northwestern leads the all-time series against Indiana, 65-38, including a 5-1 victory Feb. 10 in Tempe. Indiana's Trainer had a perfect game through five complete innings until the Wildcats put up all five of their runs in the sixth. Wilkey earned the win for Northwestern as she tossed all 7.0 innings, allowing just four hits and a run while striking out seven.
LAST TIME OUT
The Hoosiers visited No. 24 Kentucky on Wednesday, falling to the Wildcats, 15-2. Prior to that, IU traveled to Norman, Okla. over the weekend for a pair of contests against Illinois State and a single game against No. 5 Oklahoma and No. 18 South Carolina. Indiana opened up the weekend with a 5-2 victory against the Redbirds before dropping the final three games of the tournament.
HOME SWEET HOME
• This weekend's tournament marks the start of 10 straight games for the Hoosiers, who started the 2018 campaign with 23 consecutive games away from Bloomington.
• Friday's game against UIC marks the first career home game for head coach Shonda Stanton.
• The Hoosiers are 49-42 all-time at Andy Mohr Field, which opened in 2013.
• Since the inaugural Hoosier Classic in 2011, Indiana is 23-3 in the event.
BLITZ NAMED SENIOR CLASS AWARD CANDIDATE
• On Thursday, Rebecca Blitz was named one of 30 candidates nationwide for the prestigious Senior CLASS Award. To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as an NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence: community, classroom, character and competition.
• Blitz, a two-time Second Team All-Big Ten and NFCA All-Region pick, led the Hoosiers in batting average and hits during her sophomore and junior campaigns. Blitz sits in the top 10 in nearly every offensive category in Indiana history as her .333 career batting average ranking sixth all-time, her 197 hits is seventh all-time and 110 runs scored is fifth. In addition, her 67 stolen bases comes in at fourth in the IU record book. The Mountain Brook, Ala. native has played in all 187 games of her career, with 185 starts in centerfield.
• Off the field, Blitz is a two-time Academic All-Big Ten pick and will graduate in May with a Bachelor of Science in Business. She plans to get her Master of Science in Information Systems at Indiana. She's been involved in numerous organizations, including Hoosier Heroes peer mentoring and the Athletic Director's Council on Diversity and Inclusivity.
BTN ANNOUNCES BROADCAST SCHEDULE
• Big Ten Network announced its 2018 softball broadcast schedule on Wednesday, which includes Indiana's April 25 DH at Purdue.
• Every home game will be broadcast on BTN Plus via BTN2Go.
HOOSIER QUICK HITS
• Freshman Maddie Westmoreland, who collected a pair of hits against Kentucky, has raised her batting average significantly in the last three weeks:
-> After batting .182 with four hits and four RBI in the first nine games of the season, she has hit .412 with 14 hits and six RBI in the 14 games since then, which covers the last three weekends.
-> She hit two homers on Friday, including her first career home run in Indiana's win against Illinois State. She also hit a solo homer in the following game against No. 5 Oklahoma.
-> For the season, she now sits second on the team with a .321 average
• Sophomore Gabbi Jenkins still sits atop the leaderboard with her .324 average, 24 hits and nine runs. Jenkins' average has not dipped below .300 all season as she has hit mainly in the leadoff spot.
• The Hoosiers have 30 stolen bases on the year, the third-most in the Big Ten. Jenkins has nine stolen bags, which is tied for fifth-most in the conference, while Blitz has seven.
• Junior Tara Trainer's 68 strikeouts this season currently stands at fifth-most in the Big Ten. The Lebanon, Ohio native has 424 strikeouts in her career, the sixth-most in IU program history:
Career Rankings:
1. Amy Unterbrink (1983-86) - 1089
2. Gina Ugo (1993-96) - 664
3. Megan Roark (2003-06) - 577
4. Mariangee Bogado (04-06) - 569
5. Morgan Melloh (2011) - 494
6. Tara Trainer (2016-pr.) - 424
WHAT'S AHEAD IN 2018
The Hoosiers have 55 games on tap in 2018, including 21 to be played at Andy Mohr Field. This year, Indiana will play 16 games against teams who reached the NCAA Tournament last season and 10 against teams ranked or receiving votes in this week's USA Today/NFCA Poll.
After the Hoosier Classic, other non-conference tilts include Louisville, Western Kentucky and Butler. Home Big Ten battles for Indiana includes Ohio State, Nebraska, Penn State and Michigan. IU will travel to Michigan State, Maryland, Purdue and Rutgers. The 2018 Big Ten Tournament will be hosted by Wisconsin in Madison from May 10-12.
