MILWAUKEE, Wis. – The Alverno College softball team continues with Northern Athletic Collegiate Conference (NACC) play on Tuesday, April 21^st, traveling to Lisle, Illinois to take on Benedictine at 3 & 5 p.m.
 
SCHEDULE BREAKDOWN:
Tuesday, April 21^st  at Heidkamp Field in Lisle, Illinois – Alverno at Benedictine at 3 & 5 pm
Live Stats & Live Video

OPPONENT HISTORY:
Benedictine leads the all-time series 37-1.
The Eagles, who lead the NACC with seven tournament championships and are routinely a playoff team in the conference, have dominated the all-time series against the Inferno. Benedictine has won 17 straight games against Alverno, with the Inferno's lone victory over the Eagles coming in 2016. Olivia Schneider threw a complete-game shutout in the win, and Benedictine went on to win the NACC tournament championship.

SCOUTING THE OPPONENT:
Benedictine University Eagles – 2026 Record: 22-6, 8-4 NACC  | 2025 Record: 31-15, 16-8
The Eagles have had a fantastic season overall thus far, and are starting to hit their stride in conference play, sweeping MSOE and Concordia Chicago. while splitting doubleheaders with Wisconsin Lutheran, Aurora, Concordia Wisconsin, and St. Norbert.

Benedictine boasts a strong and potent offense, with five starters hitting over .400 and seven of their main starting nine hitting over. 300. Haley Barnes has been a top hitter in the NACC so far this year, with six homers and nine doubles to go along with a .500 batting average. She also has driven in 41 runs, while Alyssa Perkins has driven in 39 runs, adding three homers, 10 doubles, and a .432 batting average for the Eagles. Morgan Bruno also has been a force at the plate, hitting .441, while Lauren Bogard is hitting .409.

Behind the league's best offense is a strong group of three arms in the rotation, with McKenzie Johnson the driving force in the circle. She has nine wins and 10 complete games, accumulating 90 innings and striking out 77 batters in 17 appearances. Morgan Magnabosco, who has a 2.53 ERA, has mostly pitched out of the bullpen, while Claire Stillwell has been a solid arm with a 3.77 ERA in 39 innings.

The Eagles lead the conference with a .360 team batting average, a .437 on-base percentage, and a .970 fielding percentage. They also are second in the conference in ERA at 3.07 in 182.2 innings pitched.

LAST TIME OUT FOR THE INFERNO:
The Alverno College softball team continued Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference (NACC) play at home on Sunday afternoon, earning a split with Concordia University Chicago on Senior Day at the Alverno Softball Field. The Inferno secured a 5–1 victory in game one before falling 14–5 in the second game of the twin bill.

Before the first pitch, Alverno honored its four seniors for their contributions to the program: Emily Anguiano (South El Monte, Calif./San Gabriel Mission), Hailie Eschbach (Kenosha, Wis./Tremper), Giselle Moreno (Chicago, Ill./Lane Tech), and Kate Peabody (Sycamore, Ill./Sycamore).

Moreno broke the all-time home-run record in the first inning of game one with her solo blast to right center, as her 19th career homer passed Stef Wilmore's 18 career homers that she recorded in her playing career from 2010 to 2013. 

Moreno led the way offensively in the opener with a home run and two runs scored, while also adding two hits, including a double, in game two. Sophomore Gianna Medrano (Tucson, Ariz./Ironwood Ridge) had three hits on the day, which was powered by a 3-3 game one performance, while sophomores Cece Ehni (Snohomish, Wash./Monroe) and Bailey Gardner (Eagle Lake First Nation, Ontario/University of Winnipeg Collegiate) combined for the win in the circle in game one, allowing just one run. The game one victory marked the first NACC victory for Alverno in almost two years, with their last win in conference play coming against St. Norbert on April 20, 2024.

INFERNO TO WATCH:
Moreno, who is now the Alverno softball all-time home run leader, has been sizzling in conference play, currently holding a .433 batting average with four homers and two doubles, while driving in 10 runs. 
In her career, she is 6-12 against Benedictine with a homer and six RBI. She was 3-5 with three RBI and a homer last year against the Eagles, and was 3-5 with three RBI against the Eagles the year before as well.

BY THE NUMBERS:
The Inferno are one of four teams in the NACC with three players with an OPS over 1.000, joining Aurora, Benedictine, and Rockford. Nadya Hudson (Milwaukee, Wis./Wauwatosa East) leads the team and is third in the conference with a 1.289 OPS, while Medrano is second at 1.048 and Moreno is at 1.018.
 
UP NEXT:
Alverno hosts Concordia Wisconsin on Saturday, April 25, before heading to Dominican on Sunday, April 26.