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BLOOMINGTON, Illinois - Illinois Wesleyan swept Calvin in a non-conference doubleheader, including a walk-off win in the second game at Inspiration Field on March 27, 2026. (Photo by Jimmy Naprstek/Kodiak Creative)
Jimmy Naprstek/Kodiak Creative
4
Winner Ill. Wesleyan ILL. WES 11-10
2
North Central (Ill.) NORTH CE 6-9
Winner
Ill. Wesleyan ILL. WES
11-10
4
Final
2
North Central (Ill.) NORTH CE
6-9
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 R H E
Ill. Wesleyan ILL. WES 0 0 0 3 1 0 0 4 6 1
North Central (Ill.) NORTH CE 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 2 8 1

W: Certa, Gianna (4-2) L: Sam Schilf (3-4)

7
Winner Ill. Wesleyan ILL. WES 12-10
0
North Central (Ill.) NORTH CE 6-10
Winner
Ill. Wesleyan ILL. WES
12-10
7
Final
0
North Central (Ill.) NORTH CE
6-10
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 R H E
Ill. Wesleyan ILL. WES 0 0 0 0 1 0 6 7 8 2
North Central (Ill.) NORTH CE 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 2

W: Holland, Mallory (4-4) L: Juliana Maude (3-6)

Game Recap: Softball |

Softball Starts League Play with Two Wins at NCC

Titans begin CCIW play 2-0

NAPERVILLE, Ill. - The Illinois Wesleyan University softball team started off College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin play with a sweep at North Central College Tuesday, March 31. The Titans (12-10, 2-0 CCIW) edged out the Cardinals (6-10, 0-2 CCIW), 4-2, in game one before grabbing a 7-0 victory in game two.

Game One: Illinois Wesleyan 4, North Central 2
The first game of the day started nearly two hours after originally scheduled and endured a series of lightning strikes, but the Titans gutted out a win nonetheless. Led by a complete game effort in the circle by senior Gianna Certa (Third Lake, Ill.-Grayslake North), the Green and White came back to earn the win and snap a three-game skid.

Certa went the full 7.0 innings, spanning nearly four hours from first pitch to the final out, while fanning seven. She scattered eight hits and walked two while moving to 4-2.

Illinois Wesleyan finished with six hits on the day and walked three times. Sophomore Kelsey Bartels (Downs, Ill.-Tri-Valley) went 2-for-4 in the two-hole, while senior Claire Post (Normal, Ill.-Normal West) and freshman Isabella Boskey (Huntley, Ill.-Huntley) notched RBIs.

NCC scored in the bottom of the first to take a 1-0 lead into a lightning delay that lasted more than an hour. 

With both teams looking to regain a rhythm out of the pause in play, Certa struck out four straight spanning the second and third innings to keep the score at 1-0 into the fourth. 

The Green and White offense broke through in the fourth. Senior Casey Wissmiller (Bloomington, Ill.-Olympia) turned a quality at bat into a one-out walk and Post followed with a single to right. Not giving in on junior pinch runner Margo Geary's (St. Charles, Ill.-St. Charles North) steal of second, NCC elected to try and pick off Wissmiller at third but instead airmailed a throw down the left-field line. The throw allowed Wissmiller to scamper home and knot the score, 1-1. After senior Anna Beckman (Bourbonnais, Ill.-Bishop McNamara) walked, Boskey knocked a run-scoring single to right-center to push IWU in front. A wild pitch tacked on another run as North Central used the bullpen to stall the Titans with back-to-back groundouts.

Certa responded with a 1-2-3 bottom of the fourth, highlighted by an inning-ending strikeout, to send the Green and White back to the plate.

Sophomore Grace Wilkens (Bartlett, Ill.-Bartlett) was hit by a pitch and then scooted into second on a wild pitch. Bartels' infield single gave IWU runners on the corners with one away, before Wissmiller singled to load them. Post capped the inning with a timely fly ball to center, bringing home an insurance run.

Certa worked around a few baserunners before running into trouble in the bottom of the seventh. The Cardinals put the first three batters aboard to make things interesting, but Certa came back with a four-pitch strikeout. NCC responded with back-to-back singles to pull within two, 4-2, but Boskey collected a grounder at first to close out the win. 

Game Two: Illinois Wesleyan 7, North Central 0
Another strong outing in the circle from junior Mallory Holland (Shelbyville, Ill.-Shelbyville) propelled the Titans to a win in game two. Holland went the distance, tossing a four-hit shutout, while striking out two and walking three. 

The game was scoreless into the fifth before a Bartels RBI single brought home sophomore Julia Wilkens (Bartlett, Ill.-Bartlett). Taking advantage of an NCC error, Julia Wilkens reached and moved over to second on a sacrifice before swiping third. Grace Wilkens walked to put runners on the corners before Bartels infield single saw the game's first run come across the plate.

Holland worked around three baserunners over the next two innings, before IWU gave the junior hurler some additional run support. Sophomore Riley McDoniel (Orland Park, Ill.-Carl Sandburg) was beam and Bartels walked to put two on with two outs. A fielding error loaded the bases as Wissmiller reached on a fielding miscue, and Post took full advantage. The senior belted a two-run single into the outfield to open up a 3-0 advantage. Beckman tacked on a run-scoring knock and a pair of wild pitches with Boskey at the dish brought home two more. Sophomore Jillian Bollard (Roselle, Ill.-Saint Viator) polished off the six-run, three-hit inning with a double down the right field line to break the game open, 7-0.

A leadoff single gave NCC some momentum to start the bottom of the seventh, but Holland quickly put an end to that. The junior got a groundout to second for out number two and Beckman made an exceptional play at short to close out the win.

IWU's offense churned out eight hits, with Bartels (2-3) and Post (2-4) each recording multi-hit games. 

CCIW play rolls on Saturday, April 4, as the Titans travel to Wheaton College for a doubleheader. First pitch is set for 12 p.m.


 
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