Contact: Sam Fretto, Athletics Communication Graduate Assistant, sjfretto@noctrl.edu

NAPERVILLE, Ill. (March 31, 2026)- Battling inclement weather and hours of delays, the North Central College softball team fell in its home opener doubleheader to the Illinois Wesleyan Titans (12-10, 2-0 CCIW) on Tuesday at Shanower Family Field. The Cardinals dropped game one, 4-2 and failed to score in game two, losing 7-0.

Following a two-hour delay due to the weather, first pitch at Shanower Family Field began at 2:15 p.m. Sam Schilf got the start for the game and faced the minimum in the top of the first after giving up a leadoff single. Carley Creeth gunned down the runner trying to swipe second for the first out of the game and Schilf responded with a ground ball and a strikeout. The Cardinals struck first in the bottom half of the inning to take a 1-0 lead. Gwen Shouse led off with a single up the middle and advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt. With two outs in the inning and Shouse on second base, Kayla Crabtree lined a single into the left center field gap. Shouse came around to score as Crabtree got thrown out trying to stretch the single to a double. Schilf worked a clean top of the second inning before the game got delayed for a second time due to weather.

The teams returned to the field in the bottom of the second as both pitchers settled in. Schilf retired the side in the third inning with a pair of punchouts. After a quiet inning by North Central, Illinois Wesleyan exploded for a three-run fourth inning. With runners on the corners, a throwing error allowed the runner to come home, evening the game at 1-1. The Titans took a 2-1 lead with a single and added a third run off of a wild pitch. Schilf exited the game for Juliana Maude with one out in the fourth inning and worked around the traffic to keep it a 3-1 deficit. Illinois Wesleyan tacked on an insurance run in the fifth inning after loading the bases and scoring on a sacrifice fly.

The Cardinals looked for a two-out rally in the bottom of the sixth inning, getting the tying run up to the plate but ending the inning on a fielder's choice. North Central began a seventh-inning rally with a Creeth leadoff single and a Bailey Miller walk. Down to their final out, Shouse singled home Creeth to make it a 4-2 ballgame and Gracie Vlach loaded the bases with a single. Ultimately the comeback effort came to an end, recording the last out by grounding out to first base.

North Central outhit Illinois Wesleyan eight to two but stranded seven runners on base. Schilf took the loss in game one to move to a 3-4 record. She finished the game with a stat line of 3.1 innings pitched, giving up three hits and three runs with three strikeouts and three walks. Maude went 3.2 innings pitched, striking out four and giving up one run.

Game two was a low-scoring affair through the first five innings of the contest, as both sides combined to score just one run. Maude, getting the game two start, worked around a pair of first-inning singles to keep the Titans off the board, ending with a strikeout looking. The Cardinals had runners on first and second in the bottom of the first but got doubled up to end the threat. Both sides traded perfect innings in the second and Maude hunkered down in the third inning, keeping the Titans' runner at third and recording two outs. Maude faced the minimum in the fourth inning and the Cardinals put runners on first and second after a Hailey Morsovillo walk and Nicole Stone single but would strand the runners aboard.

Illinois Wesleyan got on the board in the fifth inning as they had runners on second and third with two outs. The Titans hit an infield single to a diving Vlach at second. Despite the runner from third scoring, Vlach fired home to Creeth, who then threw to Stone to cut down a second runner from scoring, ending the inning at a 1-0 deficit. The Cardinals had a chance to respond in the bottom of the sixth with runners on the corners but fouled out to first base to end the inning.

The Titans' offense took advantage of an error with two outs in the seventh to put up a six-run frame behind three hits and two wild pitches, putting the score at 7-0. A fielding error at third to send the game to the bottom of the seventh snowballed after a two-RBI single made it 3-0. An infield single to third base scored another Titans run and after a walk to load the bases, Maude exited the game for Schilf. Back-to-back wild pitches allowed the Titans to score two more and a double down the right field line put the finishing touches on the game.

The Cardinals recorded four hits in game two and stranded seven runners on base. Maude was given the loss to move to 3-6 on the season, going 6.2 innings and giving up seven runs, with only one earned. She struck out two and walked four.

North Central (6-10, 0-2 CCIW) continues CCIW play with a twin bill against North Park University in Chicago on Friday, April 3, with a scheduled noon first pitch.