HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. – After coming off of an entertaining weekend series against Cleveland State in which the Norse took three-of-four, Northern Kentucky aims to carry its momentum as it travels to Chicago to take on UIC in a pair of doubleheaders April 2-3. The Flames have had the upper hand over the Norse, leading the series 10-2, with the last time NKU defeating UIC coming on April 19, 2019 (4-2). 
 
Game Information
Northern Kentucky University Norse (7-15 Overall, 6-8 Horizon League)
UIC Flames (10-12 Overall, 7-5 Horizon League)
Friday, April 2 – 3 and 5:30 p.m. (ET)
Saturday, April 3 – 2 and 4:30 p.m. (ET)
Chicago | Flames Field (500)
Friday ESPN3: Game 1 | Game 2
Saturday ESPN3: Game 1 | Game 2
Stats: Live Stats
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Quick Hitters
• NKU sits at 7-15 after going 3-1 in the series against Cleveland State.
• The Norse have held leads in 13 of their 22 contests this season and have played 10, 1-run
games with a 4-6 mark in them.
• NKU is set to get back on the road as they travel to Chicago to take on UIC. The Flames lead the series, 10-2, and have won five of the last six. The last matchup took place on April 20, 2019, where UIC was victorious, 7-4.
• NKU ranks second in Horizon League-only games in ERA at 2.24 and has the struck out the most batters with 86. UIC comes into the series having struck out only 39 with a 3.81 ERA.
• Northern Kentucky received 74 votes and were picked to finish third in the #HLSB preseason
poll. This comes after NKU went 9-10 in the COVID-19-shortened 2020 season and went 22-33
with a 12-11 record in league play, good for a fourth-place league finish, in 2019.
• The Norse have a league-high seven triples against their conference foes, averaging 0.50 per
game. In total, NKU has eight triples and is averaging 0.36 triples per game, 20th in the country.
• C/UT Kendyl McKeough is coming off a four-game series against CSU where she went 6-for-9 (.667) with two doubles, a homer, four walks, three RBI and four runs scored.
• Since arriving at NKU, McKeough has started every game and is second on the team with 13 RBI. She is batting .290 and is also second on the team with three home runs.
• OF Ava Lawson has 18 hits this year, 13 of which are of the extra base variety (four doubles, three triples, six home runs). Lawson has 22 career long balls, fifth all-time at NKU.
• In NKU's six games last week, Lawson hit .375 with three homers, nine RBI and six runs scored.
• Lawson's three triples this year are the 19th most in the country.
• Freshman C Maddie Lacer has been on a role in her last seven games, going 10-for-22 (.455) at the plate with eight RBIs, four runs, two doubles and her first career homer, a grand slam against CSU. She's batting a team-best .324.
• Freshman OF Ella LeMonier is batting second-best on the team (min. 10 AB) at .323 and has solidified a spot in right field. She has registered a hit in 14 of her 19 games played.
• 2B Josie Frazier leads the Norse with 22 hits and the second most runs with 11. Her .286 batting average is fourth-best for the Norse (min. 10 AB).
• IF/OF Jenna O'Hair has five RBI and four runs to go along with a .380 OBP. She's sixth on the team in hitting with a .279 average (min. 10 AB).
• 3B/C Madi Mulder is batting .274. She has seven RBI and six runs on the season.
• P Lauryn Hicks fanned 15 batters in two games against Cleveland State. She now has 70 K's on the year, including the second-most in league play with 49.
• P Madisyn Eads picked up the first win of her career in NKU's 12-1 triumph against CSU.
• P Faith Howard ranks 40th in the nation in hits allowed per seven innings (4.03). She sports a 2.01 ERA with 18 strikeouts across 24.1 innings.
 
Last Time Out
Northern Kentucky improved to 6-8 in the Horizon League with a trio of wins over Cleveland State this past weekend. During the four-game series, the Norse put up a total of 24 runs, half of which came in game two on Saturday where they were victorious, 12-1.
 
Scouting UIC
UIC is coming off a tough series against Green Bay, going 1-3. This gives the Flames a 7-5 Horizon League record and leaves them sitting third alongside in the conference standings. A home sweep of Purdue Fort Wayne gives the Flames an unblemished 4-0 record at home, outscoring opponents 38-11 at Flames Field. Kayla Wedl provides the offensive firepower with a .419 batting average and 1.320 slugging percentage with 17 extra-base hits, 22 RBI and 27 runs scored.