HOUSTON — An opening-day doubleheader against ranked opponents offered a huge test for Illinois softball on Friday afternoon.
And the Illini aced it with flying colors.
A pair of home runs and capitalizing on a few opposing errors helped Illinois thrive in its season opener, winning 7-4 over No. 22 Oklahoma State to begin its stay at the five-game Houston Invitational.
Then, the Illini held pace to a 6-5 win in an eight-inning slugfest against No. 13 Kentucky, with the two sides combining for five homers. It was the program's first-ever win over the Wildcats, who bounced the Illini from the NCAA Regionals in both 2017 and 2016, and Illinois' 600th all-time victory.