Nittany Lions Welcome Northwestern for B1G Series in Happy Valley
PSU to host Alumni & Friends Appreciation, Family Day & two Bark in the Park opportunities this weekend
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – Penn State softball continues its seven-game homestand from Nittany Lion Softball Park & Beard Field this Friday through Sunday, April 10 through 12, as the Blue & White prepare to play host to the Big Ten Conference-rival Northwestern Wildcats in a three-game series from Happy Valley. Action is slated to begin at 5 and 2 p.m. (ET) on Friday and Saturday, respectively, with an 11 a.m. (ET) start scheduled for Sunday’s finale. All three games will stream live to a worldwide audience of authenticated subscribers via B1G+ and the B1G+ app on connected devices.
PROMOTIONS AND PARKING
Penn State softball prepares for a family-friendly weekend of fun in Happy Valley, with the Nittany Lions set to host a variety of promotions throughout the three-game weekend series. Saturday’s game will serve as PSU’s Alumni & Friends appreciation, with the program slated to welcome back alumnae from every generation of the Nittany Lion softball family for special recognitions. Sunday’s contest will serve as Penn State’s Family Day, with Hannah Morris of “Happy Valley Hannah” set to join the Blue & White for a ceremonial first pitch in advance of the contest. Both Saturday and Sunday will also feature “Bark in the Park” opportunities for fans to bring their pups for a fun pair of days at the ballpark! Weekends at Beard also roll on, with Saturday featuring postgame autographs on the concourse, and Sunday’s game featuring a chance for kids to run the Beard Field bases.
General admission seating is free for all Penn State softball home games at Nittany Lion Softball Park & Beard Field. Parking for all games in the 2026 Penn State softball season is now available online or via the ParkWhiz app, with fans encouraged to prepay for parking to avoid additional fees on game days. Click the link here to be directed to the parking hub for Nittany Lion Softball Park & Beard Field and select either a full season pass or single-game parking pass at the purchaser’s discretion. Parking is available in the Stadium West, Jordan East or Porter North lots at a rate of $5.50 per game, or $5 per game when purchasing a full season pass. Day-of event parking will be $10 without a valid permit or prepayment, with fans encouraged to pay at payment stations around the lot, or via the HONK app. Prepayment availability ends at 11:59 p.m. (ET) the night before each scheduled game day. Events will not be selectable on the site after that time, and payment must then be made on site upon arrival.
Follow the Action
Penn State’s Big Ten Conference weekend series against the Northwestern Wildcats will stream live to a worldwide audience of authenticated subscribers via B1G+ and the B1G+ app on connected devices. Links to view Penn State’s contests against Northwestern live, or watch replays of past PSU games at home or on the road in Big Ten Conference play are always available at BigTenPlus.com. Live stat links are available for all games on the Penn State softball schedule webpage or via the team’s StatBroadcast central hub at the link here.
QUICK HITS
The Nittany Lions return to work on the diamond following a three-game series sweep of the Maryland Terrapins last Friday and Saturday, April 3 and 4 from Happy Valley. Penn State improved to 26-12 overall through its first 38 opportunities on the 2026 schedule and rose to 7-5 in Big Ten Conference matchups through the first half of the conference calendar. In the all-time series between the two squads, Penn State picked up a series victory for the fourth year in a row and remained unbeaten against the Terrapins in each of the last two seasons. PSU improved its all-time lead to 30-17 through the first 47 opportunities and has won eight of the last 10 meetings with Maryland dating to 2024. Freshman infielder Allison Oneacre continues to make waves in college softball this season, with the Nittany Lion rookie trailblazing through one of the most dominant offensive seasons by a rookie in PSU history. Oneacre, a native of Alpharetta, Georgia, has already surpassed the Penn State single-season home run record for a freshman, mashing 14 home runs through this point in her young college career. Oneacre needs just six more home runs to tie, and seven to surpass the PSU single-season home run record set by alumna Cassidy Bell in the only First Team NFCA All-American campaign by a Penn Stater back in 2013. Oneacre also sits four runs batted in shy of the Penn State single-season record set by teammate Brooke Klosowicz a season ago. The Nittany Lion rookie is currently stuck in a four-way tie for second on the RBI leaderboard with 49, joining Haylie Brunson, Jennifer Tripken and Nan Sichler with that distinction.
Northwestern at Penn State
Record | 17-19 | 5-7 B1G
Record | 26-12 | 7-5 B1G
Introducing Northwestern
ABOUT THE WILDCATS
Under the direction of head coach Kate Drohan, the Northwestern Wildcats enter this weekend’s series carrying a 17-18 overall record alongside a 5-7 mark in Big Ten Conference play. The Wildcats have hovered around the .500 mark for much of the season, going 11-6 in neutral-site contests but just 2-4 at home and 4-8 on the road as they look to gain traction in league competition. Northwestern opened the year with a strong showing in tournament play, compiling the bulk of its wins on neutral fields before transitioning into conference action. Since the start of Big Ten play, the Wildcats have battled inconsistency, working to string together wins after dropping several tight contests. Despite the uneven results, Northwestern has remained competitive, owning a positive run differential and keeping opponents to a .240 batting average on the year. Offensively, Emma Raye has been a catalyst for the Wildcats, hitting at a .344 clip with a team-high eight home runs and 35 RBI. She is joined by a balanced lineup that features Kelsey Nader (.324), Kaylie Avvisato (.321, 29 RBI), and Grace Nieto (.304), all of whom have started every game this season. Kansas Robinson has added power production with seven home runs and 26 RBI, while Bridget Donahey has contributed six long balls and 22 RBI to round out a deep Northwestern batting order hitting .284 as a team. In the circle, Northwestern is anchored by Marina Mason, who holds an 8-8 record with a team-best 2.43 ERA across 89.1 innings pitched while striking out 97 batters. Riley Grudzielanek has provided additional stability with a 5-2 record in 13 appearances, while Signe Dohse, Emma Blea and Renae Cunningham have all logged meaningful innings to round out the Wildcats’ pitching staff, which carries a 3.73 ERA collectively.
STORY OF THE SERIES
In an all-time series that dates to the 1992 season, Penn State and Northwestern get set for their 72nd, 73rd and 74th all-time meetings this weekend in University Park. The Blue & White own a 15-56 record against the Wildcats, with PSU seeking its first win in the all-time series since the 2011 season. The Blue & White took a pair of games off Northwestern during the inaugural season of competition at Nittany Lion Softball Park & Beard Field, with PSU welcoming NU to Happy Valley on May 13, 2011 for a conference doubleheader. The Nittany Lions were triumphant in both contests, logging a 6-3 win in the lid-lifter before closing things out with a 6-2 result. The most recent three-game Big Ten Conference weekend series between the two teams came in Evanston in 2023, with the Nittany Lions dropping a trio of games. NU had a handle on the first two contests, but PSU battled to take a one-run lead into the bottom of the seventh in the series finale before falling, 5-2. Last year, the two squads met during B1G Softball x Devon Park in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, the host site of the Women’s College World Series. The two-game conference set marked the season-opening action for both programs in conference competition in 2025. Northwestern took the first matchup by a 13-7 margin and registered a 10-2 result in five innings of play to close things out two days later.
Northwestern at Penn State
Record | 17-19 | 5-7 B1G
Record | 26-12 | 7-5 B1G
Northwestern at Penn State
Record | 17-19 | 5-7 B1G
Record | 26-12 | 7-5 B1G
Follow the Nittany Lions
Visit GoPSUsports.com for more information on Penn State softball. Fans can keep up to date with the Nittany Lion softball team on Facebook at /pennstatesoftball as well as Instagram and X @PennStateSB.
The 2026 Penn State softball season is presented by Highmark.