FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Tyler Friel, Sports Information Graduate Assistant, 630-637-5302

May 4, 2016 – For the fourth straight year, the North Central College softball team will take part in the College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW) tournament thanks to a third place finish in the regular season.

North Central finished the regular season with an 18-16 record, with an 8-6 conference record. Illinois Wesleyan University (29-8, 11-3 CCIW) claimed its third straight title and 14^th overall and will host the tournament on May 5-6. Wheaton College (27-11, 10-4 CCIW) placed second while Carthage College (19-19, 7-7 CCIW) rounded out the top four.

The Cardinals faced a very tough schedule this season, facing national ranked opponents along with well-established softball programs. Early in the season, the Cardinals took down No. 24 University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh by a score of 2-1. They recently stole one against No. 12 Illinois Wesleyan University on a wild finish, winning 4-3 in walk-off fashion.

North Central has had some great team accomplishments but has also had some amazing individual accomplishments. Amanda Walker now holds the record for career RBI with 141. She also places second all-time in homeruns with 18 while Andrea Starr places fourth all-time with 15. Starr also places second in innings pitched (535.1) and wins (57), while placing third in strikeouts (299), and tied for fourth in shutouts (15).

Jenna Trojniar leads the team in batting average this season at .380 while Taylor Clugston falls in second at .330. Trojniar also leads the team in hits (38), total bases (59), slugging percentage (.590) and on-base percentage (.475). Walker and Starr lead the team in homeruns with five each.

In the circle, Starr finished the regular season with an 11-11 record, posting a 2.45 ERA with 67 strikeouts.

This season the Cardinals split their series against Illinois Wesleyan and Carthage, while unfortunately being swept by Wheaton.

Game one will feature the Cardinals playing Wheaton College Thursday, May 5 at 12 pm. Illinois Wesleyan will play Carthage in the following game. Loser of game one will play at 4 pm while the winner plays at 6 pm. The tournament website including the event program and live stats can be found HERE.