Illinois softball starts its stay at the Big Ten tournament, a tournament the Illini have never won, at 1:30 p.m. Thursday, with the seventh-seeded Illini (34-20) facing 10th-seeded Michigan State (27-27) in a first-round game at Penn State. Here are three items to watch from Tyra Perry’s team:
1. Illinois is hitting .311 as a team, with seven regulars hitting above .300. Nicole Evans boasts a team-high 12 home runs and 50 RBI to go with her .331 average, but she isn’t the only Illini packing a punch. Allie Bauch (.333, seven home runs, 33 RBI), Annie Fleming (.