Five Things to Know: Badgers return to action against Michigan State

Friday, May 7

East Lansing, MI

3 PM

Wisconsin Badgers

Michigan State

Photo by: Victoria Dombeck

Five Things to Know: Badgers return to action against Michigan State

May 06, 2021 | Softball

UW to play Spartans for the first time since 2016

By: AJ Harrison

MADISON, Wis. – The Wisconsin softball team returns to action this weekend with a trip to East Lansing, Michigan, to take on the Michigan State Spartans. First pitch is slated for 3 p.m. CT on Friday while Saturday's doubleheader and Sunday's series finale are both scheduled for noon starts.

Fans can watch the Badgers in action live on Big Ten Network+ and follow the action on Twitter (@BadgerSoftball).

1. LAST TIME OUT: UW won its second-ever series at Nebraska, taking three of four games from the Cornhuskers on April 23-25 Megan Donahue led the UW offense with eight hits, seven RBI and three home runs while Maddie Schwartz earned three wins in the circle for UW with a 1.07 ERA and 13 strikeouts. The Badgers also enjoyed a season-high 15 hits in their 9-3 comeback win on Sunday afternoon.

#TBT to our series win at Nebraska!#Badgers || #OnWisconsin pic.twitter.com/KqxmwV9xyP
— Wisconsin Softball (@BadgerSoftball) May 6, 2021

2. ON A ROLL: The Badgers enter this weekend's series on a tear, winning 10 of their last 12 games dating back to their series against Iowa April 9-11. UW has outscored its opponents 67-28 since April 9. During the run, Fiona Girardot and Megan Donahue each have 16 hits while Donahue has 12 RBI and Peyton Bannon has 13 runs scored. Maddie Schwartz has a 7-1 record during the run with a 1.28 ERA and 40 strikeouts.

3. STARTING FAST: One of the keys to the Badgers' success this year has been their performance in the first inning, as UW has outscored its opponents 18-5 in the opening inning during the last 12 games and 22-8 this season. The Badgers are 7-4 this season when they lead after the first inning.

4. POWER SURGE: After hitting five home runs during their series with the Huskers, the Badgers have moved into sixth place in the Big Ten in home runs with 21 on the season. Fourteen of the Badgers' 21 homers this year have come in their last 12 games. Megan Donahue has also moved into a tie for ninth in the Big Ten this year with her six home runs.

5. AGAINST MICHIGAN STATE: The Badgers trail the all-time series with Michigan State 27-15, but this weekend's series with the Spartans marks the first time the two teams have met since the 2016 season. UW took two out of three in East Lansing, winning a 10-1 game on March 25, 2016 and a 5-4 game on March 26, 2016.