Northwestern University Athletics
'Cats Kick Off Busy Week at Bradley Monday
3/23/2003 12:00:00 AM | Softball
March 23, 2003
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EVANSTON, Ill. - While many of their classmates are enjoying Spring Break at tropical locations such as Cancun, the Northwestern softball team is set to trek to such exotic locales as Peoria, Bloomington, South Bend, East Lansing and Ann Arbor. After taking two weeks off for final exams, the 'Cats are back in action Monday at Bradley, beginning a busy stretch of eight games in seven days.
The Wildcats kick off the week with single games at in-state foes Bradley (Monday, 3 p.m.) and Illinois State (Tuesday, 3 p.m.), before traveling to Notre Dame for a doubleheader on Wednesday (3 p.m.). NU then heads north to take on Michigan State on Friday (3 p.m.) and Saturday (1 p.m.), before finishing with a doubleheader at Michigan (noon). The 'Cats are 4-0 all-time against Bradley and hold a 13-12-1 series lead over Illinois State. Notre Dame is 3-2 against the Wildcats. Northwestern holds a 50-23 advantage over Michigan State, and Michigan is 52-24 all-time versus NU.
Last Time Out
Northwestern posted a 5-1 record at the Speedline Invitational in Plant City, Fla. from March 6-8, including a perfect 5-0 mark in pool play. The Wildcats opened with a 5-1 win over Ball State as senior Lauren Schwendimann tossed the second no-hitter of her career. Robyn Pettinger and Erin Mobley recorded two hits apiece. NU followed up the win with a 7-2 defeat of Hofstra, as Courtnay Foster struck out 13 to earn the win. Jessie Wellnitz had two hits, including a two-run double. The following day, the 'Cats cruised to a 8-0 win over North Carolina in five innings, scoring five runs in the first. Mobley, Jamie Dotson and Brett Nakabayashi notched two hits apiece. Northwestern then handed No. 4 Washington its first loss of the season in a 6-5 victory. Dotson's two-out RBI double in the top of the seventh proved to be the game-winning hit. Mobley smacked her first home run of the season Saturday morning as the Wildcats defeated No. 16/21 Massachusetts 9-6. Pettinger and Cindy Muran each recorded two-out, two-run hits to help seal the win. NU fell in the quarterfinals of the championship round to eventual tournament champion Oklahoma State 2-1 in 10 innings. Foster struck out a career-high 15 in the loss.
Scouting Bradley
After starting the season 1-7, the Braves have won six of their last 14 contests. Bradley dropped two of three games to Southwest Missouri State at home over the weekend. Laura Harms leads the Braves with a .356 batting average. BU is batting .226 this season, while its opponents are hitting .277.
Scouting Illinois State
The Redbirds improved to 13-12 overall and 6-0 in the Missouri Valley Conference thanks to three wins over Evansville last weekend. The team suffered two one-run losses to Illinois earlier in the week. Audra Rast has a 2.05 ERA and has struck out 99 in 99.1 innings, including 11 K's in a complete game one-hitter against Evansville.
Scouting Notre Dame
The Irish posted a doubleheader sweep of Western Michigan on Sunday to improve to 10-9 overall. Notre Dame sports an impressive .280 team batting average and has four regulars that are hitting over .300. Megan Ciolli and Meagan Ruthrauff are tied for the team lead with a .349 average. The Irish have won seven of their last 11 games.
Scouting Michigan State
MSU moved to 18-8 on the season following a doubleheader split at Dayton on Sunday. Jessica Beech struck out 13 Flyers and allowed only one hit in a 3-0 win. She sports a 11-3 record with a 0.73 ERA and has struck out 110 in 96.1 innings pitched. Sandy Lewis leads the Spartans with a .359 batting average. Michigan State posted a 12-game winning streak earlier this season.
Scouting Michigan
A perfect 4-0 record at the Boilermaker Invitational in West Lafayette, Ind. over the weekend improved the 15th-ranked Wolverines' record to 15-6 overall. Last season's Big Ten Pitcher of the Year Marissa Young is 9-0 this year with a 1.21 ERA while posting 84 strikeouts in just 57.2 innings. She has also hit a team-leading four home runs. Melinda Moulden leads Michigan with a .358 batting average to go along with 12 RBI.
Head Coach Kate Drohan
Kate Drohan is in her second season as the head coach of the Wildcats. In her first season at the helm, Drohan led Northwestern to a 24-18-1 record and a 10-9 mark in the Big Ten. It was NU's fifth consecutive season with 20 or more victories. The team finished tied for fifth in the conference, and missed out on a berth in the Big Ten Tournament due to a lost tiebreaker. Prior to becoming head coach, Drohan served as an assistant under longtime coach Sharon Drysdale for four seasons. Assistant coaches Alicia Smith and Caryl Drohan, Kate's twin sister, are in their third and second seasons with NU, respectively.
'Cats Earn Recognition in National Polls
Northwestern is ranked in the ESPN.com/USA Softball Top 25 poll for the second consecutive week. The Wildcats are ranked No. 24 this week. This season represents NU first top 25 appearance in a national poll since 1995. The 'Cats are also receiving votes in the USA Today/NFCA Top 25 poll. Their eight votes are the second most of teams not in the top 25, ranking them 27th.
Foster Named Big Ten Co-Pitcher of the Week
Freshman Courtnay Foster was recognized as the Big Ten Co-Pitcher of the Week for her performance in Fullerton, Calif. Feb. 28-March 2. Foster struck out nine in earning the win over No. 6 California. She then allowed just three hits and no earned runs in a tough-luck 1-0 loss to No. 7 Cal State Fullerton. Foster responded by striking out a then career-high 11 to earn her first collegiate shutout in a 3-0 win over Portland State. Her 0.63 ERA in the three games lowered her season ERA to 0.97 (currently 0.79). It is the first such honor for Foster in her career. She shared the award with Ohio State's Katie Chain.
Foster Fans Foes
With her 15-strikeout performance against Oklahoma State March 8, Courtnay Foster became the first Wildcat pitcher to fan at least 15 in a game since Jaclyn DeBoard struck out 17 Morehead State batters in a six-inning outing on Feb. 28, 1998. Foster's 13 strikeouts against Hofstra March 7 were NU's most in a seven-inning game since DeBoard struck out 13 Evansville batters on March 24, 1998.
NU in Big Ten Openers
Northwestern has an all-time record of 13-7 in Big Ten openers. The Wildcats have won their last four opening games of the conference season and six of the last eight. Last season, NU defeated Indiana 9-1.
'Cats on the Internet Monday and Tuesday
Bradley will offer a live webcast of its game with the Wildcats at 3 p.m. Monday. Fans that are unable to make the trip to Peoria, Ill. can listen to the broadcast at http://www.bubraves.com/softball. Illinois State will also offer a webcast at 3 p.m. Tuesday. That game can be accessed at http://www.wjbc.com.
Tough Road Ahead
The Wildcats face a challenging schedule in 2003. Northwestern will encounter at least 13 different opponents and 20 total games against teams that are ranked in the top 25 or are receiving votes in the NFCA/USA Today Coaches Poll. Included on the schedule are five of the top 10 ranked teams in the current poll.
Caught Streaking
NU's victory over Portland State, coupled with wins in its first five games of the Speedline Invitational gave the Wildcats a six-game winning streak. It was the 'Cats' longest win streak since the 1999 season. That year, Northwestern had two separate six-game streaks divided by a 3-2 loss to Southern Mississippi.
Team Captains
Seniors Lauren Schwendimann and Jessie Wellnitz and junior Carri Leto are the team captains for the 2003 season. Schwendimann, a pitcher, earned second-team NFCA All-Region honors in 2002 as a utility player. Wellnitz appeared in 37 games in the outfield last season without committing an error. Leto earned second-team All-Big Ten honors at shortstop for the Wildcats last season.
Next Time Out
NU begins a stretch of six straight home games with its home opener at 3:30 p.m. next Wednesday when it takes on Illinois-Chicago at Drysdale Field. The Wildcats then host Big Ten games against Ohio State at 3 p.m. Friday and noon Saturday. Sunday's action pits the Wildcats against Penn State in a doubleheader beginning at noon.
