Northwestern University Athletics
Softball Heads to Hawaii for Chevron Invitational Tournament
3/20/2002 12:00:00 AM | Softball
March 20, 2002
EVANSTON, Ill. - After spending the last two weeks focusing on academics, the Northwestern softball team (6-6-1) is ready to return to the playing field. This weekend the Wildcats will be in Honolulu, Hawaii for the Chevron Invitational. The Wildcats are schedule to play at least seven games, with the possibility of two more depending on tournament play.
The weeklong trip will feature numerous Wildcat reunions. Sophomore catcher J.C. Kira (Honolulu, Hawaii/St. Francis) was raised on the island. She graduated from St. Francis High School where she earned team MVP honors her junior and senior years and was named all-state her junior year. Junior first baseman Brett Nakabayashi (Irvine, Calif./Irvine) was also born in Hawaii, but moved to California at an early age. In addition, both Wildcat assistant coaches have connections to Saturday's opponent, Hofstra. Alicia Smith had a standout career for the Pride from 1997-2000, while Caryl Drohan was the assistant coach from 1997-2000 and the associate head coach in 2001.
The action will get underway Friday morning, as NU plays Nippon Sports Science University (NITTAIDAI) #2 at 10 a.m. HT. NITTAIDAI, which is bringing two teams, is a university out of Japan. The game will be considered an exhibition by NU, and all stats and records against both NITTAIDAI team will not count in season totals.
The 'Cats will then face host Hawaii at 4 p.m. HT. Hawaii is 20-12 overall and 4-0 in the Western Athletic Conference. Hawaii and NU met last season at the South Florida Tournament, with the 'Cats coming away with a 4-1 win. NU is 3-0 lifetime against the Rainbow Wahines.
Saturday will be a busy day at Rainbow Wahine Stadium, as NU is scheduled to play three games. The morning game will feature No. 8 Cal Berkeley, against whom the 'Cats are 1-8. Cal is 29-9 this season and led by junior Veronica Nelson's incredible offensive power. Nelson has 39 career home runs and is the NCAA leader in career walks among active players with 233.
In the afternoon, the 'Cats will face the second Japanese team. For the nightcap, Smith will square off against her alma mater in Hofstra. Smith was an All-American for the Pride and currently holds the Hofstra career hits record. She also ranks first or second in every career offensive category and in the top four in all major pitching categories. The Pride struggled out of the gate this season, losing their first 10, but they have rebounded to win seven of their last 11.
Teams will be seeded according to their records from round-robin play, then play a mini-tournament on Sunday. Teams will have anywhere from one to three games.
The Wildcats will meet Hawaii again on Monday for a single game at 5 p.m. HT.
Tournament Schedule
Thursday, March 21, 2002
Nittaidai #2 vs. Cal Berkeley-3 p.m.
Hawaii vs. Cal Berkeley-5 p.m.
Hawaii vs. Nittaidai #1-7 p.m.
Friday, March 22, 2002
NU vs. Nittaidai #2-10 a.m.
Nittaidai #1 vs. Hofstra-noon
Cal Berkeley vs. Hofstra-2 p.m.
Hawaii vs. NU-4 p.m.
Hawaii vs. Nittaidai #2-6 p.m.
Hofstra vs. Nittaidai #2-8 p.m.
Saturday, March 23, 2002
Cal Berkeley vs. Nittaidai #1-9 a.m.
Cal Berkeley vs. NU-11 a.m.
Nittaidai #1 vs. NU-1 p.m.
Hawaii vs. Hofstra-3 p.m.
Nittaidai #2 vs. Nittaidai #1-5 p.m.
NU vs. Hofstra-7 p.m.
Sunday, March 24, 2002
Game 1: #5 seed vs. #6 seed-9 a.m.
Game 2: #2 seed vs. #4 seed-11 a.m.
Game 3: #1 seed vs. winner game #1-1 p.m.
Game 4: #2 seed vs. winner game #2-3 p.m.
Game 5: winner game #3 vs. winner game #4
