Northwestern University Athletics
Thursday, March 26
Rosemont, Ill.
1 pm CT
Northwestern
vs
#17 Oregon
Wildcats Welcome No. 17 Oregon for Home Opening Series at The Ballpark at Rosemont
3/25/2026 11:05:00 PM | Softball
ROSEMONT, Ill. – Northwestern will play its first home games of the 2026 season as the Wildcats, riding a seven-game winning streak, welcome No. 17 Oregon to The Ballpark at Rosemont for a three-game series beginning on Thursday.
Due to impending weather, the opener has been moved to Thursday at 1 p.m. CT on Big Ten Network, followed by Friday's 6 p.m. matchup (BTN) and Saturday's 12 p.m. finale (B1G+).
The Wildcats will play 12 home games at The Ballpark at Rosemont this season, which currently serves as one of the homes of Athletes Unlimited Softball League (AUSL), while Kip & Sara Kirkpatrick Stadium undergoes a transformative rebuild that will be completed this summer.
Northwestern has been tested early this season, facing one of the nation's toughest non-conference schedules. Eleven of the Wildcats' 14 losses have come against ranked opponents, while 16 of their first 23 games were played against 2025 NCAA Tournament teams (11 different opponents). Oregon becomes the seventh ranked opponent NU has faced this season and enters as the reigning Big Ten regular season champions, having snapped Northwestern's three-year conference title run from 2022–24.
The Wildcats enter the weekend red hot, outscoring opponents 75-14 during their seven-game winning streak. Over those last two weekends, Northwestern is hitting .359 (70-for-195) with 38 extra-base hits, including 18 home runs, while limiting opponents to a .121 batting average. Emma Raye has powered the offense, hitting .588 with five home runs and 23 RBI in those seven games, while Avery Garden is batting .500 with a .579 on-base percentage. Fellow starters Grace Nieto, Kaylie Avvisato and Bridget Donahey are all hitting above .400 with on-base percentages north of .500 during the stretch.
Last weekend at Illinois, the 'Cats dominated the Fighting Illini en route to a three-game sweep in which Northwestern outscored its in-state rivals 30-6 and never trailed in three games. A 12-run top of the first inning on Saturday marked the second-most runs scored in a single inning in program history, as NU went on to score 19 runs–tied for the sixth-most in a game in program history. Northwestern has now won nine of its last 10 against Illinois.
First-year Marina Mason headlines the pitching staff, leading the team with 67.0 innings and 72 strikeouts while holding opponents to a .179 average. She ranks top-10 in the Big Ten in ERA (2.30; 7th), strikeouts (8th) and hits allowed per seven innings (4.60; 3rd). Mason earned both Softball America National Pitcher of the Week and Big Ten Freshman of the Week honors after a historic showing in Champaign, going 2-0 with a 0.50 ERA and a .044 opponent batting average, allowing just two hits across 50 batters faced over her two starts. She capped the weekend with a 7.0-inning no-hitter, Northwestern's 54th no-hitter all-time and first in conference play since 2021.
Offensively, Raye leads Northwestern with a .377 batting average, 34 RBI, a .490 on-base percentage and a .792 slugging percentage, having already surpassed her previous career high in RBI after just the 28th game of the season this year. Raye is averaging 1.17 RBI per game, which ranks 10th among all Big Ten players. She drove in a team-best eight RBI in the Illinois series, adding two home runs, five runs scored and a .769 on-base percentage.
At the top of the lineup, Nieto is averaging close to one run per game (0.97) and has scored a team-high 28 runs this season while posting a .443 on-base percentage and having already matched her career high with three home runs. She reached base at a .583 clip against Illinois, going 4-for-9 with a home run, three walks, four runs scored and three RBI.
Northwestern is 5-7 all-time against Oregon, with this weekend marking the first meeting as conference opponents. The programs last met at the Mary Nutter Classic in 2023, a 2-1 Oregon win, after Northwestern earned a 1-0 victory at The Classic in 2022. Oregon head coach Melyssa Lombardi previously coached Northwestern pitching coach Michelle Gascoigne at Oklahoma, where Gascoigne helped lead the Sooners to a national championship in 2013.
Gascoigne also returns to familiar territory this weekend, having starred professionally for the Chicago Bandits at The Ballpark at Rosemont. A two-time All-NPF selection, she helped lead the Bandits to the 2015 Cowles Cup Championship.
Following the series, Northwestern will continue its six-game homestand next weekend against Michigan, opening with back-to-back 7 p.m. contests on April 3 and April 4 before a 1:30 p.m. Sunday finale on April 5.
Due to impending weather, the opener has been moved to Thursday at 1 p.m. CT on Big Ten Network, followed by Friday's 6 p.m. matchup (BTN) and Saturday's 12 p.m. finale (B1G+).
The Wildcats will play 12 home games at The Ballpark at Rosemont this season, which currently serves as one of the homes of Athletes Unlimited Softball League (AUSL), while Kip & Sara Kirkpatrick Stadium undergoes a transformative rebuild that will be completed this summer.
Northwestern has been tested early this season, facing one of the nation's toughest non-conference schedules. Eleven of the Wildcats' 14 losses have come against ranked opponents, while 16 of their first 23 games were played against 2025 NCAA Tournament teams (11 different opponents). Oregon becomes the seventh ranked opponent NU has faced this season and enters as the reigning Big Ten regular season champions, having snapped Northwestern's three-year conference title run from 2022–24.
The Wildcats enter the weekend red hot, outscoring opponents 75-14 during their seven-game winning streak. Over those last two weekends, Northwestern is hitting .359 (70-for-195) with 38 extra-base hits, including 18 home runs, while limiting opponents to a .121 batting average. Emma Raye has powered the offense, hitting .588 with five home runs and 23 RBI in those seven games, while Avery Garden is batting .500 with a .579 on-base percentage. Fellow starters Grace Nieto, Kaylie Avvisato and Bridget Donahey are all hitting above .400 with on-base percentages north of .500 during the stretch.
Last weekend at Illinois, the 'Cats dominated the Fighting Illini en route to a three-game sweep in which Northwestern outscored its in-state rivals 30-6 and never trailed in three games. A 12-run top of the first inning on Saturday marked the second-most runs scored in a single inning in program history, as NU went on to score 19 runs–tied for the sixth-most in a game in program history. Northwestern has now won nine of its last 10 against Illinois.
First-year Marina Mason headlines the pitching staff, leading the team with 67.0 innings and 72 strikeouts while holding opponents to a .179 average. She ranks top-10 in the Big Ten in ERA (2.30; 7th), strikeouts (8th) and hits allowed per seven innings (4.60; 3rd). Mason earned both Softball America National Pitcher of the Week and Big Ten Freshman of the Week honors after a historic showing in Champaign, going 2-0 with a 0.50 ERA and a .044 opponent batting average, allowing just two hits across 50 batters faced over her two starts. She capped the weekend with a 7.0-inning no-hitter, Northwestern's 54th no-hitter all-time and first in conference play since 2021.
Etched in Northwestern history ????
— Northwestern Softball (@NUSBcats) March 22, 2026
?? 54th no-hitter in program history
?? First in a conference game since 2021
?? First by an NU first-year since 2011.
Take a bow, Marina Mason ?? pic.twitter.com/sYObz5cudM
Offensively, Raye leads Northwestern with a .377 batting average, 34 RBI, a .490 on-base percentage and a .792 slugging percentage, having already surpassed her previous career high in RBI after just the 28th game of the season this year. Raye is averaging 1.17 RBI per game, which ranks 10th among all Big Ten players. She drove in a team-best eight RBI in the Illinois series, adding two home runs, five runs scored and a .769 on-base percentage.
At the top of the lineup, Nieto is averaging close to one run per game (0.97) and has scored a team-high 28 runs this season while posting a .443 on-base percentage and having already matched her career high with three home runs. She reached base at a .583 clip against Illinois, going 4-for-9 with a home run, three walks, four runs scored and three RBI.
Northwestern is 5-7 all-time against Oregon, with this weekend marking the first meeting as conference opponents. The programs last met at the Mary Nutter Classic in 2023, a 2-1 Oregon win, after Northwestern earned a 1-0 victory at The Classic in 2022. Oregon head coach Melyssa Lombardi previously coached Northwestern pitching coach Michelle Gascoigne at Oklahoma, where Gascoigne helped lead the Sooners to a national championship in 2013.
Gascoigne also returns to familiar territory this weekend, having starred professionally for the Chicago Bandits at The Ballpark at Rosemont. A two-time All-NPF selection, she helped lead the Bandits to the 2015 Cowles Cup Championship.
Following the series, Northwestern will continue its six-game homestand next weekend against Michigan, opening with back-to-back 7 p.m. contests on April 3 and April 4 before a 1:30 p.m. Sunday finale on April 5.
Players Mentioned
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Softball - Marina Mason Throws No-Hitter, 'Cats Secure Series Sweep at Illinois (3/22/26)
Sunday, March 22
Softball - Wildcats Erupt in 19-5 Run-Rule Win, Capture Series Victory at Illinois (3/21/26)
Saturday, March 21
Softball - Wildcats Open Series at Illinois with 6-1 Win Behind Marina Mason Complete Game (3/20/26)
Saturday, March 21
Softball - Marina Mason Tosses Complete Game Shutout, 'Cats Blank Missouri in Clearwater (2/14/26)
Saturday, February 14
