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Softball Set to Host CCIW Tournament at Inspiration Field

Titans open tournament play Thursday, May 8, at 4 p.m.

5/7/2025 3:46:00 PM

BLOOMINGTON, Ill. - The Illinois Wesleyan University softball team begins postseason play this week as host to the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin Tournament Thursday through Saturday, May 8-10. The Titans will begin play with a 4 p.m. first pitch Thursday, May 8, with their opponent set to be determined during the day's earlier games.

Illinois Wesleyan enters the week 31-7 overall and has the top seed in the tournament after an unblemished 16-0 league record. In addition to the top-seeded Titans, No. 2 seed Augustana, No. 3 seed Millikin, No. 4 seed Carthage, No. 5 seed North Central, and No. 6 seed Wheaton will vie for the CCIW Tournament Championship and the league's automatic bid to the NCAA Division III Softball Tournament.

The Green and White headlined the All-CCIW teams and postseason honors announced Wednesday, May 7, as IWU put a league-leading eight on the All-CCIW squads while senior Jen Kuhn (Normal, Ill.-University High) and sophomore Mallory Holland (Shelbyville, Ill.-Shelbyville) took home specialty awards. Kuhn and Holland were joined by senior Ava Khoury (Columbia, Ill.-Columbia) and the junior duo of Gianna Certa (Third Lake, Ill.-Grayslake North) and Anna Beckman (Bourbonnais, Ill.-Bishop McNamara) on the All-CCIW First Team. The All-CCIW Second Team featured juniors Claire Post (Normal, Ill.-Normal West) and Casey Wissmiller (Bloomington, Ill.-Olympia) alongside freshman Bella Pinter (LaMoille, Ill.-Saint Bede Academy), rounding out IWU's most selections since 2014.

Kuhn tops a potent IWU offense with a team-best .455 batting average with team-highs in hits (61), doubles (15), RBIs (51), slugging percentage (.701), and on-base percentage (.472). Khoury ranks second on the team with a .368 average and has driven in 37 on her 42 hits. Pinter has pieced together a strong rookie season, cranking out 38 hits on a .358 batting average. She leads the team with 19 walks and has also scored 20 runs with five homers and five doubles. Also boasting an average north of .350 is freshman Grace Wilkens (Bartlett, Ill.-Bartlett), who enters the week batting .354. She has 34 hits and has gone 9-for-9 in stolen bases. Wissmiller, Post, and Beckman, along with freshman Ella Hermes (Peru, Ill.-Saint Bede Academy), carry batting averages above .300 as regular starters for the Green and White. Post has a team-high eight homers, while Beckman has scored a team-leading 39 runs and ranks second with 45 hits.

In the circle, Illinois Wesleyan has one of the deepest pitching staffs in the conference. Five different Titans have earned wins this season, with Holland and Certa leading the way. Holland holds a team-best 1.35 earned run average over 62.0 innings of work. She carries a 7-1 record with four saves and has limited opponents to a .170 batting average. Certa, the team's leader with 98.2 innings of work, has fanned a team-best 66 while amassing a 14-2 record and a 2.13 ERA.

IWU has made a total of 27 appearances in the CCIW Tournament heading into this week, compiling a 67-31 record since making its first appearance in 1987. The Titans won the league's tournament 16 times, claiming the crown last season as well as in 1996, 1997, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2009, 2010, 2012, 2014, 2015, 2017, 2018, 2019, and 2022.

First pitch of Illinois Wesleyan's first game of the CCIW Tournament is scheduled for 4 p.m. at Inspiration Field. Admission will be cash only with ticket prices included below. A full schedule, including links to the live streams and live stats for the week is listed below. The full tournament webpage can be found here.

Tournament Admission (each day)
CASH ONLY
Adults - $10.00
Seniors, Students and Children ages 6-14 - $5.00
Children ages 5 and under - Free
Current CCIW Students upon presentation of a current CCIW Institution ID - Free

Tournament Schedule (subject to change)
Thursday, May 8, 2025
Game 1: #4 Carthage vs. #5 North Central | Noon
Game 2: #3 Millikin vs. #6 Wheaton | 2 p.m.
Game 3: Game 1 winner vs. #1 Illinois Wesleyan | 4 p.m.
Game 4: Game 2 winner vs. #2 Augustana | 6 p.m.

Friday, May 9, 2025
Game 5: Game 3 loser vs. Game 4 loser | 1 p.m.
Game 6: Game 3 winner vs. Game 4 winner | 3:30 p.m.
Game 7: Game 5 winner vs. Game 6 loser | 6 p.m.

Saturday, May 10, 2025
Game 8: Game 6 winner vs. Game 7 winner | 11 a.m. | Live Stream | Live Stats
Game 9: If necessary game

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