Northwestern University Athletics
Northwestern
Indiana
Drysdale Reaches Milestone with 700th Softball Win
4/20/2001 12:00:00 AM | Softball
April 20, 2001
EVANSTON, Ill. - The Northwestern softball team defeated Indiana, 4-2 and 5-1, Friday at Anderson Field in Evanston, giving head coach Sharon Drysdale her 700th career victory in the first game of the doubleheader. She is just the 16th Division 1 softball coach to reach that milestone. Drysdale now ranks third all-time in wins among Big Ten coaches. Her overall coaching record currently stands at 701-521-3.
Northwestern scored one run in the bottom of the first inning in Game 1 when sophomore Brett Nakabayashi (Irvine, Calif./Irvine) opened with a single, and junior Gretchen Barnes (Flossmoor, Ill./Homewood-Flossmoor) followed with a single. Barnes then advanced to second on a Hoosier error while Nakabayashi scored.
Indiana came back in the fifth inning with two runs to take a 2-1 lead, but the `Cats rallied with three runs in the bottom half. With two outs, sophomore Robyn Pettinger (Hoffman Estates, Ill./Fremd) doubled to bring home sophomore Andria Caruthers (Inglewood, Calif./Westchester) and advance sophomore Lauren Schwendimann (Tustin, Calif./Foothill) to third. Junior Rane Gunderson (Minnetonka, Minn./Minnetonka) reached first base on a fielder's choice and advanced to second on the throw as Schwendimann scored her first collegiate run, and Pettinger followed with a steal of home plate.
Sophomore Brie Brown (Nashville, Tenn./Harputh Hall) pitched a complete game, allowing four hits and striking out four. Both Hoosier runs were unearned. For the game, Pettinger went 2-for-3 with one run, one double, one RBI and one stolen base. Sophomore Alyson Schulz (San Diego, Calif./Serra) also went 2-for-3.
In the second game, the `Cats found themselves down, 1-0, after one inning of play. But NU came alive in the third inning, scoring five runs on six hits. Freshman J.C. Kira (Honolulu, Hawaii/Saint Francis) singled to center field as sophomore Jessie Wellnitz (Waterloo, Iowa/East) advanced home. With the bases loaded, Barnes singled to left field, advancing everyone one base and scoring Kira. Freshman Carri Leto (El Cajon, Calif./Valhalla) then grounded out to the second baseman as Nakabayashi scored. Schulz singled to third base, bringing home Gunderson. As Schulz was caught stealing second, Barnes stole home for the fifth run of the inning.
Schwendimann pitched a complete game, allowing one run on four hits while striking out eight. Barnes went 3-for-4 with one run and one RBI while eight other `Cats garned one hit each.
NU tallied eight hits in the first game and 11 in the second en route to the victories. Friday marked a day of pulling even for the `Cats. Their overall record improved to 17-17, while their Big Ten record stands at 6-6. Brown evened her pitching record to 12-12, while Schwendiman moved to 5-5.
NU continues conference action on Saturday, with one game against Purdue, scheduled for 2 p.m.
