BLOOMINGTON, Ill. — The 2026 College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW) Softball Championship opened Thursday afternoon at Inspiration Field with four games. Fourth-seeded North Central and third-seeded Augustana won the first two games of the day, while top-seeded Illinois Wesleyan and Augustana later advanced in the winners’ bracket. The Vikings finished Thursday as the only team to win twice.
 
The tournament resumes Friday with three games in Bloomington. North Central (1-1) will face Millikin (0-1) in an elimination game at 1 p.m. Illinois Wesleyan (1-0) will play Augustana (2-0) at 3:30 p.m. The North Central-Millikin winner will meet the loser of Illinois Wesleyan-Augustana at 6 p.m. Saturday’s schedule begins at 11 a.m., followed by a ninth game of the tournament, if necessary.
 
Game 1: North Central def. Carthage, 8-5
North Central opened the tournament with an 8-5 win over Carthage.
 
The Cardinals took a 1-0 lead in the first inning when Gwen Shouse walked and scored on Lauren Bowmar’s sacrifice bunt. Carthage answered in the fourth on Angela Parker’s RBI double, then scored four times in the fifth to move in front 5-1.
 
North Central responded in the bottom of the fifth. Sydney Nienhouse scored on Shouse’s sacrifice fly before Hailey Morsovillo tied the game with a three-run double to left-center.
 
The Cardinals regained the lead in the sixth. Shouse doubled to score Bailey Miller and Kayla Lindberg, then scored on a Carthage throwing error for the final 8-5 margin.
 
Sam Schilf earned the win for North Central, allowing five runs over six innings. Juliana Maude recorded the final out for the save. Emma Faubel took the loss for Carthage.
 
Game 2: Augustana def. North Park, 7-4
Augustana used three home runs to earn a 7-4 win over North Park in Thursday’s second game.
 
Alexis Duke gave the Vikings the lead in the first inning with a solo home run to left-center. Augustana added three runs in the fourth, including Madi Bickell’s two-run home run and Emma Evans’ sacrifice fly.
 
Aubrey Gradin extended the lead in the fifth inning with a three-run home run that scored Lindsay LaVine and Lilli Burton, giving Augustana a 7-0 advantage.
 
North Park scored four runs in the seventh inning. Eden Baker, Kayla Sapolu and Kayla Lorenz each had RBI singles, while another run scored on an Augustana error.
 
Mya Brown earned the win for Augustana after holding North Park scoreless through five innings. Abrianne Papas took the loss for North Park.
 
Game 3: Illinois Wesleyan def. North Central, 9-6
Illinois Wesleyan advanced in the winners’ bracket with a 9-6 win over North Central on Thursday evening.
 
North Central took a 2-1 lead in the third inning when Hailey Morsovillo singled to left-center, scoring Bailey Miller and Gwen Shouse.
 
Illinois Wesleyan moved in front with six runs in the fourth. Isabella Boskey drove in two runs with a double, Riley McDoniel added an RBI bunt single and Kelsey Bartels followed with an RBI single. Casey Wissmiller later drove in two more runs with a groundout to give the Titans a 7-2 lead.
 
The Cardinals cut the margin to 8-5 in the sixth on Miller’s three-run home run. Illinois Wesleyan answered in the bottom half on Jillian Bollard’s RBI single. Lauren Bowmar added an RBI single for North Central in the seventh.
 
Gianna Certa earned the complete-game win for Illinois Wesleyan, allowing 12 hits and striking out four. Juliana Maude took the loss for North Central.
 
Game 4: Augustana def. Millikin, 9-3
Augustana closed the opening day with a 9-3 win over Millikin, moving the Vikings to 2-0 in the tournament.
 
The Vikings took a 1-0 lead in the third inning on Alexis Duke’s sacrifice fly. Augustana then scored six runs in the fourth, highlighted by RBI doubles from Emma Evans and Mikaylin Hofer, an RBI single from Lilli Burton and a run-scoring single from Alaina Diaz.
 
Augustana added another run in the fifth when Marley Behm scored on Duke’s fielder’s choice. Millikin scored in the bottom half on Abbey Matthews’ RBI single, then added two runs in the sixth on Brianna Denault’s solo home run and an unearned run from Emily Kobel.
 
Hofer hit a solo home run in the seventh to complete the scoring for Augustana.
 
Mya Brown earned her second win of the day for the Vikings, throwing a complete game with seven strikeouts. Alyssa Dralle took the loss for Millikin.