After a 2023 campaign that saw Illinois softball finish with an overall record of 29-27 and a 6-16 mark in conference play, it will now host a series of fall exhibition games at Eichelberger Field in preparation for the 2024 season.
First on the menu is Lake Land College, who will be traveling to Champaign on Thursday night for a 7 p.m. first pitch. The Lakers have already participated in two exhibition games of their own, falling 3-2 to the Bradley Braves while their meeting with Wisconsin was not recorded.
The two schools have never faced off in the regular season, but Lake Land has quite the reputation in the NJCAA. Last season, they finished with an astonishing regular season record of 46-10 with a 36-4 total against GRAC opponents. All this was good for the label of GRAC champions on top of a plethora of All-GRAC awards. Illinois has the fortune of not having to face GRAC player of the year Eva Richardson, as she is no longer on Lake Land’s roster and appears to be transferring schools for the upcoming season.
Following that matchup, Illinois will take the field for the Illini Fall Classic on Sunday. The first leg will start at 11 a.m. against Wabash Valley College, with a game against Kaskaskia College immediately after at 1:30 p.m. Each of these teams has also never played against Illinois in the regular season.
Wabash Valley is also a member of the NJCAA’s GRAC and was swept in the NJCAA Region 24 series by Lake Land last year. Although faltering in recent seasons to Lake Land, Wabash Valley has a very solid history of dominance in the GRAC. The Lady Warriors claimed five of six GRAC championships from 2014-2019, on top of being GRAC Runner Up in 2021.
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Kaskaskia is no walk in the park either, going 49-18 last season with an impressive 30-10 record against conference opponents. On top of this, the Blue Angels were NJCAA Region 24 Champions last season, advancing past each of the other squads Illinois will face this weekend.
Illinois, on the other hand, has had a pretty active offseason both on the field and in the coaching staff. Head coach Tyra Perry, who was hired in the summer of 2015 as Illinois softball’s second head coach ever, was extended through the 2027 season. On top of that, five-year ace Sydney Sickles was brought on as an assistant coach now that she no longer had athletic eligibility.
On top of retaining familiar faces, Perry brought in Kirsten Verdun to be an assistant coach who primarily works with the pitchers. Verdun spent eight seasons with the Wisconsin Badgers after serving as a graduate assistant with Louisville in 2014-15.
“We’re really excited to have her (Verdun) with us,” Perry said. “She is a tremendous pitch caller, among other things, especially when you’re in heated moments. She does a great job preparing pitchers for those moments.”
As far as pitching personnel is concerned for the fall stretch, Illinois is only returning two veterans, senior Tori McQueen and junior Lauren Wiles. With the remaining three seeing little to no action as an Illini, the fall will be critical for getting them up to speed and ready to be key pieces of the rotation.
“Tori McQueen and Lauren Wiles will pitch throughout the eight games this fall but it will be in a limited fashion,” Perry said. “Just to kind of get them acclimated to coach V’s (Verdun’s) system. But you’ll mainly see our other three.”
One of those three primary pitchers for the fall is transfer Bri Bower, a right-handed pitcher from Mississippi State, who joins Illinois as a junior. Princeton outfielder Serena Starks is Illinois’ only other transfer and is listed as a graduate student.
Illinois has a younger group this season, with 10 of their 23 players being underclassmen and seven completely new faces. A steady presence throughout her four years as an Illinois undergrad, outfielder Kelly Ryono will be even more key entering her fifth year in orange and blue.
“We’re excited about Kelly Ryono,” Perry said. “Kelly plays high level softball so we’re super excited that she has remained with us, and I think she is going to make a great impact on our season this year.”
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