Opening day for the 2024 softball season has arrived as the Illini look to play their first game in 274 days. As they begin every spring, the Illini flock south for their first matchup. The Tiger Invitational in Auburn, Alabama, includes the No. 20 Auburn Tigers, No. 23 Virginia Tech Hokies and the Belmont Bruins.
Five games in three days await the Illini, who play the Hokies and Bruins on Friday, the Tigers and Bruins on Saturday and then the Hokies once more on Sunday. Head coach Tyra Perry’s group is no stranger to the competition in this opening weekend format, as her teams have played a top-20 opponent every non-COVID season since 2019.
The Tigers are also a familiar foe, with Saturday being their third matchup in the last five years. After taking the first game in 2020, the Illini fell to the Tigers in Florida last year, giving them the chance for revenge this weekend.
The Illini officially announced their captains this week, naming junior outfielder Stevie Meade, senior shortstop Megan Ward and graduate student outfielder Kelly Ryono as the leaders of the club. The trio headlines an offense that returns some firepower from a year ago and is looking to get off to a fast start in Alabama.
Action will begin at 10 a.m. on Friday morning against the Hokies. The ladies from Blacksburg finished 39-20 last season before falling in the first round of the NCAA tournament. The Hokies returned most of their lineup and three of the four pitchers on their staff, posing a tough matchup for the Illini to face twice. Both matchups take place in the morning, with round two at 11 a.m. on Sunday.
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After a seven-hour break, the Illini are back in action on day one, meeting the Bruins at 7 p.m. Pitching was the forte of the Bruins up and down 2023, and they returned all three of their go-to starters. While their offense has struggled to produce run support, the Illini will still get some quality experience in two games against this solid pitching unit. Both games are nightcaps for the two doubleheaders, with the second coming at 7 p.m. on Saturday.
The third game of the weekend and first on Saturday poses the Illini’s only matchup with the hosting Tigers at 4 p.m. Auburn looks to build off an impressive 43-19 season where they came up one win shy of their first Super Regional appearance since 2017. Similar to the Bruins, they return their entire rotation as well as some power threats in the lineup, making it easy to see why they are a top-20 team in the preseason poll.
The pitching situation is a little different for the Illini this weekend, as they lost two of their top three pitchers from last season. Opening weekend will provide a great experience and show the Illini where their rotation stands early. Junior Lauren Wiles and senior Tori McQueen will presumably be given a big workload, and they’ll need help from the offense to settle in early.
Along with the three captains, onlookers should watch for two newcomers this weekend as they make their Illini debut. Graduate student outfielder Serena Starks won Ivy League Player of the Year in 2023 after hitting .397. The veteran played center field in the fall for the Illini and will look to become a mainstay at the top of the order.
Freshman infielder Eileen Donahue is also a name to watch after committing to the Illini as the 54th-rated high school prospect in the country, according to Extra Innings. The first year made some loud contact in the fall and could get some reps against elite pitching in her first official game. The Illini will need contributions from these two and everyone else in the opening weekend if they want to take down two ranked opponents.
@benfader7
