It’s not often a team gets the chance to play the defending national champion, but the Illinois softball team will get its opportunity this weekend as it travels to Michigan to take on the No. 12-ranked Wolverines on Friday and Saturday.

Today’s game will be aired on ESPNU – the first time in school history that Illinois has been on TV for a regular season softball game.

The Illini will test the old saying that good pitching always beats good hitting against a Michigan team that is first in the Big Ten in earned run average (1.00) and strikeouts (448).

Illinois is tied for the third best batting average in the conference and has hit 44 home runs, good for first in the Big Ten rankings.

“We need to be aggressive,” said head coach Terri Sullivan. “It’s nothing we haven’t seen. We’re not afraid of anyone’s pitching, but we’ll still have to put together some runs and play good defense.”

The matchup against the Wolverines also features two finalists for the USA Softball Player of the Year: Illinois’ Jenna Hall and Michigan’s Jennie Ritter.

Hall is hitting .505 with a .922 slugging percentage and a .677 on-base percentage, while Ritter leads the way for the best pitching staff in the Big Ten boasting a 19-5 record and a miniscule .73 ERA.

Ritter, a three-time Big Ten Pitcher of the Week this year, has not lost a start since mid-March, has pitched 14 straight scoreless innings and hopes to make it 12 straight victories today at Alumni Field in East Lansing.

“She’s considered one of the best in the country,” Sullivan said. “We faced her before though and we’re familiar with her. It’s going to be a battle but we feel good about our offense.”

The good news for Illinois – Ritter has a tendency to give up the long ball. Of the 18 earned runs she has given up this year, 13 of those runs were surrendered on home runs.

The bad news for Illinois – Michigan’s pitching does not start and end with Ritter. Junior Lorilyn Wilson is 10-6 this season with a 1.56 ERA and almost posted a perfect game against No. 20 Louisville earlier this season.

Junior designated player Kisten Martin and junior centerfielder Molly Lawhead will have to keep their bats hot if Illinois hopes to put up some runs.

Lawhead is batting .395 with two home runs and five RBIs and ranks sixth in batting and total bases in the conference. Martin has raised her average 55 points since March 28 and has hit safely in 14 of the last 18 games.

“We’re really pleased with how Kisten is coming along as a hitter,” Sullivan said. “She’s always been able to deliver a big hit, but this year she’s really given us consistency. Molly has also put together some real good games the last few weeks and has been huge at the plate for us.”

Only eight teams make the Big Ten tournament at the end of the year and Penn State and Indiana, currently ranked seventh and eighth in the Big Ten, are nipping at Illinois’ feet. But with a few wins this weekend, the Illini (7-6) could move past Michigan State, who is just a half game in front of Illinois for the fifth overall spot in the Big Ten rankings.

Illinois could be meeting the Spartans at just the right time. Michigan State is on a season-worst five-game losing streak after being swept by both Penn State and Ohio State and managing just three hits in a tough loss against Western Michigan.

“Looking at it on paper, you’d see they’ve lost a few games recently but they were on such a tear earlier in the season,” Sullivan said. “They’re going to be ready to play – that’s just the way the Big Ten is. Anyone can beat anyone, but we’re playing some good softball.”