Illinois State women’s basketball prepares for a rematch with Abilene Christian in the WNIT Super 16

Image from Illinois State women’s basketball.

NORMAL, Ill. — Illinois State women’s basketball faces Abilene Christian University at 6:30 p.m. on Friday at CEFCU Arena in a WNIT Super 16 matchup. The Wildcats look to avenge last season’s loss to the Redbirds as the teams battle each other in the Super 16 for the second consecutive year.

ISU defeated ACU 78-68 in last year’s matchup, where four Redbirds finished in double figures, but this year’s team is without three of the four leading scorers. The Redbirds have four returning players who saw action in the 2025 game, but one of them is Nevaeh Thomas, who suffered a season-ending injury in the Nov. 18 game against Loyola-Chicago.

The Wildcats enter the game at 24-10 after defeating Florida International University in the second round. 77-66. Erin Woodson led the team with 18 points, five steals and five rebounds. Natalia Chavez earned 17 points and Payton Hull followed with 16.

Hull ended the West American Conference season as the Player of the Year, leading scorer and finished second in three-point field goals made, averaging 2.33 a game. She is the program’s single-season scoring leader, with 622 points.

In the second-round win, the Wildcats shot 50.3% from the field and 44.7% from beyond the arc. The main difference maker was points off the bench as ACU had 15 compared to zero from FIU.

ACU was one of the strongest defensive teams in the WAC, allowing its opponents to score just over 60 points per game on average, while averaging 71 PPG on offense. The Wildcats average 35 rebounds per game and have 381 total steals this season.

ISU comes into the match 21-13 and 15-1 at home. They are building momentum off a dominant 81-55 win over the University of Texas-Rio Grande Valley. Doneelah Washington led the campaign, earning 21 points with 22 minutes, while Madison Austin tied her career high of 14 points to help add to the Redbirds’ 46 points in the paint.

ISU held the Vaqueros to 28.4% from the field and six points off the bench. The Redbirds limited themselves to eight turnovers, the second-lowest amount all season.

ISU is the third-best scoring team in the Missouri Valley Conference. The Redbirds average 72.9 PPG and have the highest field-goal percentage in the conference with a 44.5%. They have limited opponents to an average of 67.7 PPG, but struggle on the boards, averaging 37 rebounds per game, putting them in the bottom three in the MVC.

Washington will be crucial for the Redbirds. She was apart of the All-MVC First Team, averaging 17 PPG and had 12 games with 20 0r more points.

Trista Fayta leads the team in assists with a total of 197 on the season and will need to continue to find Washington and Austin in the post for the Redbirds to fly away with the victory.

It will be a battle on all fronts in the long-awaited rematch. ISU is seeking back-to-back Great 8 appearances as the Wildcats look to redeem themselves off of last seasons loss to the Redbirds.

For all things ISU women’s basketball, stay tuned on wznd.com.