The Wisconsin Badgers (8-5-1 Big Ten, 23-17-1 overall) will finally get to return to Goodman Diamond this weekend for an extended period of time, as their series against Illinois is the beginning of an eight-game home stand.
The homestand was supposed to begin Wednesday with a doubleheader against North Dakota State, but those games were preemptively cancelled due to weather concerns and will not be replayed.
Wisconsin will attempt to build on the momentum it has gathered during its last five games, going 4-1 on the road against Big Ten foes Iowa and Minnesota.
“This had to have been one of the best weeks in Wisconsin softball since our staff has been here,” head coach Yvette Healy said of the road trip earlier this week. “It was just a fun, unbelievable week for this team.”
Illinois (5-9, 25-18) has won three of its last five games, and two of those wins have been on the road. Their most recent outing was a 9-7 win at home against Eastern Illinois Wednesday, a back-and-forth contest that could have gone either way until the fifth inning, when the Illini made their move, scoring three unanswered runs to secure the win.
The Illini have two pitchers that appear to be potential threats in Breanna Wonderly and Jade Vecvanags. Both have notched wins in multiple tight games this season, and Vecvanags has pitched an upset victory against a then-top-10 opponent. Both will likely play this weekend as neither made an appearance against EIU Wednesday.
Wisconsin hopefully has its answer to Wonderly and Vecvanags in senior Taylor-Paige Stewart, who has gone 4-0 in her last four appearances and has held opponents to eight total runs over that span.
Healy is excited for everything an extended home stand brings, especially the challenge, as the team has only played seven games at home.
“Being at home is tough because we play on the road so much,” Healy said. “We’re hoping the fan support kind of pushes us to get that home edge.”
The Badgers start their home stand at 4 p.m. Friday at Goodman Diamond, and continue play on Saturday at 1 p.m. and Sunday at 1 p.m. Sunday’s game is the annual “Get to Goodman” event, which includes carnival games and $1 admission as well as in-game entertainment.
