Northwestern University Athletics
Sunday, April 26
West Lafayette, IN
12 pm CT
Northwestern
27-19, 0
1
at
0
Purdue
32-18, 0
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | Runs R | Hits H | Errors E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Northwestern | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 1 |
| Purdue | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
‘Cats Extend Winning Streak to 10, Earn Series Sweep at Purdue
4/26/2026 9:29:00 PM | Softball
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – Northwestern extended its winning streak to 10 consecutive games and earned its third-straight Big Ten series sweep, taking three games on the road against the Purdue Boilermakers.
The Wildcats opened the weekend with an 8-7 come-from-behind victory on Friday evening, powered by a seventh-inning rally that was capped off by a three-run Emma Raye homer. Northwestern followed up with an 11-4 victory on Saturday, scoring 10 unanswered runs after falling behind in the first inning to lock up the series victory. On Sunday, the Wildcats claimed a 1-0 win in a pitcher's duel behind a complete game shutout from Marina Mason.
Northwestern now sits 27-19 on the season and 14-7 in Big Ten play, tied with Indiana for fifth in the conference standings. After entering the weekend ranked 49th nationally in RPI, the Wildcats have jumped 12 spots up to No. 37.
As a team, Northwestern hit .298 (25-for-84) with 13 extra-base hits over the weekend while limiting Purdue hitters to just a combined .205 average (16-for-78) with five extra-base hits. The sweep marked Northwestern's first in West Lafayette since 2016.
On Friday, the Wildcats fell behind 6-0 in the second inning before clawing back to cut the deficit to two entering the seventh inning. Grace Nieto and Kaylie Avvisato delivered back-to-back RBI extra-base hits to start the scoring in the third inning, while Kansas Robinson and Isabel Cunnea each hit solo home runs to cut into the lead. With one out in the top of the seventh, Raye launched a three-run home run–her 13th of the season–to give the Wildcats the lead. In the bottom of the seventh, Mason recorded back-to-back outs to escape a bases loaded jam and secure the win.
On Saturday, Avvisato got the scoring started with a solo home run in the top of the first before Purdue responded with four runs in the bottom of the frame. Entering in relief with no outs in the bottom of the first, Renae Cunningham limited the damage and proceeded to deliver a gem in the circle. Cunningham tossed 7.0 innings, allowing just one hit and no runs. She retired 21 of 23 batters faced while throwing just 67 pitches. Offensively, Northwestern's bats plated runs in all but one inning as the Wildcats scored 10 unanswered runs to claim the series victory.
The Wildcats and Boilermakers were locked in a pitcher's duel throughout Sunday's finale, entering the seventh inning in a scoreless tie. Avvisato and Raye led off the top of the seventh with back-to-back singles, and Robinson moved them into scoring position with a sacrifice bunt. With one out, Kelsey Nader drove in the game-winning run with a sacrifice fly to the right field warning track to score Avvisato. From there, Mason retired the Boilermakers in order in the bottom of the frame to lock up a three-hit complete game shutout.
Marina Mason tossed complete games in both of her appearances this weekend, going 2-0 with a 3.00 ERA (6 ER/14.0 IP) while limiting Purdue hitters to a .222 batting average. Her 12 complete games rank second in the conference behind only UCLA's Taylor Tinsley, while her six complete-game shutouts rank among the top 10 nationally and second in the Big Ten behind only Nebraska's Jordy Frahm. During the Wildcats' 10-game winning streak, Mason is 8-0 and has thrown 40.2 innings while posting a 1.89 ERA (11 ER/40.2 IP) and limiting opposing batters to a .171 average.
Kaylie Avvisato led the Northwestern bats over the weekend, going 6-for-11 with a .583 on-base percentage, a 1.091 slugging percentage (one home run, one triple, one double), three RBI and a team-high four runs scored. On Saturday, the sophomore matched her career high with four hits, going 4-for-5 with a homer, a double, two RBI and three runs scored. Avvisato also extended her reached base streak to a career-high 24 consecutive games, during which she is hitting .432 (35-for-81) with 29 RBI and 35 runs scored.
Bridget Donahey posted a historic effort in Saturday's win, going 3-for-4 with two home runs, a double, two runs scored and matching her career high with four RBI. It marked the fourth multi-homer game of the season for Donahey, while her 10 total bases tied for the second-most in single-game program history, trailing only Angela Zedak (13 at Illinois; April 9, 2024). The senior shortstop has already set career highs this season in hits (41), RBI (32) and home runs (11).
Emma Raye is hitting .515 (17-for-33) with 19 RBI and a 1.091 slugging percentage during the Wildcats' 10-game winning streak. With her three-run homer on Friday, Raye now sits at 54 RBI on the season, passing Jordyn Rudd (52 in 2022) for the most RBI in a single season by a Northwestern catcher and tying Marisa Bast (2014) for ninth in program single-season history. During conference play, Raye sits in the Top-10 among all Big Ten hitters in batting average (.415), on-base percentage (.525), and slugging percentage (.846).
Northwestern has locked up a berth in the Big Ten Tournament, featuring the top 12 teams in the standings from May 6-9 at Maryland Softball Stadium in College Park, Maryland. Prior to that, the Wildcats will close out the regular season with a three-game home series against Minnesota at The Ballpark at Rosemont. The Wildcats and Golden Gophers will face off on Friday at 1 p.m. CT, followed by 7 p.m. CT first pitches on Saturday and Sunday. Saturday's matchup will be Senior Night, as the Wildcats will honor their five seniors (Bridget Donahey, Abby Harvey, Kelsey Nader, Grace Nieto and Kansas Robinson) prior to first pitch.
The Wildcats opened the weekend with an 8-7 come-from-behind victory on Friday evening, powered by a seventh-inning rally that was capped off by a three-run Emma Raye homer. Northwestern followed up with an 11-4 victory on Saturday, scoring 10 unanswered runs after falling behind in the first inning to lock up the series victory. On Sunday, the Wildcats claimed a 1-0 win in a pitcher's duel behind a complete game shutout from Marina Mason.
Northwestern now sits 27-19 on the season and 14-7 in Big Ten play, tied with Indiana for fifth in the conference standings. After entering the weekend ranked 49th nationally in RPI, the Wildcats have jumped 12 spots up to No. 37.
As a team, Northwestern hit .298 (25-for-84) with 13 extra-base hits over the weekend while limiting Purdue hitters to just a combined .205 average (16-for-78) with five extra-base hits. The sweep marked Northwestern's first in West Lafayette since 2016.
On Friday, the Wildcats fell behind 6-0 in the second inning before clawing back to cut the deficit to two entering the seventh inning. Grace Nieto and Kaylie Avvisato delivered back-to-back RBI extra-base hits to start the scoring in the third inning, while Kansas Robinson and Isabel Cunnea each hit solo home runs to cut into the lead. With one out in the top of the seventh, Raye launched a three-run home run–her 13th of the season–to give the Wildcats the lead. In the bottom of the seventh, Mason recorded back-to-back outs to escape a bases loaded jam and secure the win.
On Saturday, Avvisato got the scoring started with a solo home run in the top of the first before Purdue responded with four runs in the bottom of the frame. Entering in relief with no outs in the bottom of the first, Renae Cunningham limited the damage and proceeded to deliver a gem in the circle. Cunningham tossed 7.0 innings, allowing just one hit and no runs. She retired 21 of 23 batters faced while throwing just 67 pitches. Offensively, Northwestern's bats plated runs in all but one inning as the Wildcats scored 10 unanswered runs to claim the series victory.
What a game, Renae Cunningham!
— Northwestern Softball (@NUSBcats) April 25, 2026
7.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 67 Pitches ?? pic.twitter.com/CRDc0NV124
The Wildcats and Boilermakers were locked in a pitcher's duel throughout Sunday's finale, entering the seventh inning in a scoreless tie. Avvisato and Raye led off the top of the seventh with back-to-back singles, and Robinson moved them into scoring position with a sacrifice bunt. With one out, Kelsey Nader drove in the game-winning run with a sacrifice fly to the right field warning track to score Avvisato. From there, Mason retired the Boilermakers in order in the bottom of the frame to lock up a three-hit complete game shutout.
Marina Mason tossed complete games in both of her appearances this weekend, going 2-0 with a 3.00 ERA (6 ER/14.0 IP) while limiting Purdue hitters to a .222 batting average. Her 12 complete games rank second in the conference behind only UCLA's Taylor Tinsley, while her six complete-game shutouts rank among the top 10 nationally and second in the Big Ten behind only Nebraska's Jordy Frahm. During the Wildcats' 10-game winning streak, Mason is 8-0 and has thrown 40.2 innings while posting a 1.89 ERA (11 ER/40.2 IP) and limiting opposing batters to a .171 average.
Another complete game shutout and a career high 11 strikeouts for Marina Mason ??
— Northwestern Softball (@NUSBcats) April 26, 2026
7.0 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 11 K pic.twitter.com/jJF9g2efL4
Kaylie Avvisato led the Northwestern bats over the weekend, going 6-for-11 with a .583 on-base percentage, a 1.091 slugging percentage (one home run, one triple, one double), three RBI and a team-high four runs scored. On Saturday, the sophomore matched her career high with four hits, going 4-for-5 with a homer, a double, two RBI and three runs scored. Avvisato also extended her reached base streak to a career-high 24 consecutive games, during which she is hitting .432 (35-for-81) with 29 RBI and 35 runs scored.
Bridget Donahey posted a historic effort in Saturday's win, going 3-for-4 with two home runs, a double, two runs scored and matching her career high with four RBI. It marked the fourth multi-homer game of the season for Donahey, while her 10 total bases tied for the second-most in single-game program history, trailing only Angela Zedak (13 at Illinois; April 9, 2024). The senior shortstop has already set career highs this season in hits (41), RBI (32) and home runs (11).
Historic day for Bridget Donahey ??
— Northwestern Softball (@NUSBcats) April 25, 2026
3-for-4 • 2 homers • 2B • 4 RBI
10 total bases, tied for the 2nd in single-game program history! pic.twitter.com/eO0VDvyiV0
Emma Raye is hitting .515 (17-for-33) with 19 RBI and a 1.091 slugging percentage during the Wildcats' 10-game winning streak. With her three-run homer on Friday, Raye now sits at 54 RBI on the season, passing Jordyn Rudd (52 in 2022) for the most RBI in a single season by a Northwestern catcher and tying Marisa Bast (2014) for ninth in program single-season history. During conference play, Raye sits in the Top-10 among all Big Ten hitters in batting average (.415), on-base percentage (.525), and slugging percentage (.846).
Northwestern has locked up a berth in the Big Ten Tournament, featuring the top 12 teams in the standings from May 6-9 at Maryland Softball Stadium in College Park, Maryland. Prior to that, the Wildcats will close out the regular season with a three-game home series against Minnesota at The Ballpark at Rosemont. The Wildcats and Golden Gophers will face off on Friday at 1 p.m. CT, followed by 7 p.m. CT first pitches on Saturday and Sunday. Saturday's matchup will be Senior Night, as the Wildcats will honor their five seniors (Bridget Donahey, Abby Harvey, Kelsey Nader, Grace Nieto and Kansas Robinson) prior to first pitch.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Mason, Marina (16-8)
L: Julia Gossett (12-10)
Batting:
RBI: Nader, Kelsey 1
SH: Robinson, Kansas 1
SF: Nader, Kelsey 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Avvisato, Kaylie 1
SB: Donahey, Bridget 1
Batting:
2B: Bella Douglas 1
Base Running:
HBP: Delaney Reefe 1
Game Leaders
AB
3
R
1
H
1
RBI
0
AB
1
R
0
H
1
RBI
0
AB
3
R
0
H
0
RBI
0
Players Mentioned
IF
/ Softball
OF
/ Softball
P
/ Softball
IF
/ Softball
C/OF
/ Softball
P
/ Softball
OF
/ Softball
IF
/ Softball
IF
/ SoftballSoftball - Marina Mason's Complete Game Shutout Fuels a 1-0 Series Sweeping Win at Purdue - 4/26/26
Sunday, April 26
Softball - Wildcats Score 10 Unanswered, Lock Up Series Win with 11-4 Victory at Purdue (4/25/26)
Saturday, April 25
Softball - 'Cats Erase 6-0 Deficit, Take Down Purdue Behind Emma Raye 7th Inning Home Run (4/24/26)
Saturday, April 25
Softball - 'Cats Earn Series Sweep, Earn 8-0 Run-Rule Win Over Michigan State (4/19/20)
Monday, April 20
