Hoosiers Homer Past Norse in Knoxville

Saturday, May 16

Knoxville, Tenn.

5:30 PM

Indiana University

43-15

Northern Kentucky

26-25

Team	1	2	3	4	5	Runs R	Hits H	Errors E
Northern Kentucky	0	0	0	0	0	0	3	1
Indiana	2	0	4	1	1	8	11	0

5/16/2026 8:00:00 PM | Softball

Box Score Box Score (PDF)

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. ––– It was a home run that opened the scoring for the Indiana softball program and a home run that closed out an 8-0 run-rule victory over Northern Kentucky in an elimination game of the NCAA Knoxville Regional on Saturday (May 16) at Sherri Parker Lee Stadium.

Indiana (43-15) scored in four of the five innings and Ella Trout retired Northern Kentucky (26-25) in order in three of her five innings of work to tie for the largest margin of victory in an NCAA Tournament game in program history (Jacksonville State, 1996; Notre Dame, 1994).

Indiana now faces No. 24 Virginia in a second elimination game at 8:15 p.m. on Saturday (May 16). The winner will advance on the Championship Sunday against No. 8 Tennessee on May 17 at 2 p.m. ET.

REGIONAL GAME 2: INDIANA 8 NORTHERN KENTUCKY 0 (5 innings)

KEY MOMENTS
• The scoring got started with two outs in the bottom of the first for Indiana when Josie Bird homered to left-center field. Alex Cooper walked with one out before Bird hit her 14th home run of the season.
• A pair of RBI singles scored the first two runs of the third inning. Avery Parker started things with a double and pinch runner Peyton Drummond came around to score on Madalyn Strader's RBI single. Ellie Goins then walked and came in to score on a Brooke Mannon base hit.
• Hannah Haberstroh walked to put two runners on base and Cassidy Kettleman - who made a pair of diving catches in the top of the third inning - singled to plate a pair of runs in the bottom half and make it 6-0 after three.
• Northern Kentucky loaded the bases with two outs in the top of the fourth before Ella Trout got a flyout to end the threat.
• Goins drove in an RBI in the fourth inning after Parker and Bird singled to start the frame. Her RBI double to center field accounted for the seventh run IU of the game.
• Aly VanBrandt provided the decisive run in the run-rule victory on a solo home run to right field in the fifth.

NOTABLES
• The win gives Shonda Stanton at least one victory in the NCAA Tournament in three of the last four seasons.
• IU is now 18-24 all-time in the NCAA Tournament with a 5-11 mark since the Regional/Super Regional format started in 2005.
• All nine starters reached base in the game, with eight collecting hits.
• The 11 hits in the game pushed the season total to 516 - a program record. The hit total moved past the 509 hits from 2025 and is just the second 500-hit season in program history.
• Indiana now owns the season record for runs scored (463), hits (516), walks (233), home runs (86) and RBIs (424).
• With two home runs, Indiana extended its program-record to 86 home runs on the season. The previous mark was 81 home runs in 2023.
• Josie Bird hit a two-run home run to start the scoring in the first inning and posted her 18th multi-RBI game of the season.
• Aly VanBrandt hit her 16th home run of the season in the fifth inning to provide the final run of the run-rule win.
• Alex Cooper moved her reached base streak to 20 games to tie VanBrandt for the longest on the team in 2026.
• Ella Trout (13-6) tossed all five innings to collect the win. She retired the side in order in the second, third and fifth innings and sat down 10 of the first 11 hitters she faced. She scattered three hits, hit one batter and struck out one.