Northwestern University Athletics
Wildcats' Big Ten Season Begins at Sharon J. Drysdale Field
3/29/2006 12:00:00 AM | Softball
March 29, 2006
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EVANSTON, Ill. -- Finally, after 26 games, it is time for Big Ten softball.
Halfway through its 2006 schedule, No. 16 Northwestern will open its conference slate this weekend against Wisconsin and Iowa at Sharon J. Drysdale Field.
The games begin at 3 p.m. CT Friday against Wisconsin, followed by a noon CT game Saturday versus the Badgers. Sunday's doubleheader against Iowa also begins at noon CT.
The Wildcats concluded the nonconference tournament portion of their schedule with an 18-8 record, including wins over then-No. 1 UCLA, now-No. 7 Oregon State and now-No. 8 California. Northwestern is coming off a very successful Spring Break trip through Hawaii and California, where it turned in an 8-2 record capped with a 3-2 victory at Easton Stadium over the Bruins.
Northwestern jumped two spots in the poll with its victory over the No. 1 squad. Although a nameless SID reported it as being the first time in school history the Wildcats have beaten a No. 1, Northwestern did in fact take down then-No. 1 Washington, 4-1, on March 22, 2000. (Thanks to those team members who pointed out this error).
The highest ranked squad a Wildcat team previously had defeated under current head coach Kate Drohan was then-No. 2 California, which the Wildcats took down, 2-1, last season at the Capital Classic in Sacramento, Calif.
At the midway point of the season, freshman Tammy Williams (El Dorado Springs, Mo./Osceola) has asserted herself as a force, leading the team with a .349 batting average, 26 runs scored, 29 hits and 13 walks.
Junior Garland Cooper (Mission Viejo, Calif./Santa Margarita Catholic) has turned it on of late, now carrying a .342 batting average with 18 RBIs and a team-best 11 doubles into Big Ten play. Senior Kristen Amegin (West Sacramento, Calif./Elk Grove) currently registers a career-best .313 batting average with a team-high 21 RBIs and five home runs.
In the circle, junior Eileen Canney (Paradise, Calif./Paradise) set a career-high for strikeouts, tossed her second-career no-hitter and beat the No. 1 team in the nation -- all in just the last two weeks. Senior Courtnay Foster (Tucson, Ariz./Sahuaro) already has double-digit wins (she's 10-4), and currently ranks 26th all-time in NCAA Division I history in strikeouts per seven innings (9.0).
This weekend, Northwestern welcomes Wisconsin (11-10) and Iowa (17-12) to Sharon J. Drysdale Field. The Wildcats have won their last three meetings against the Badgers, while the Hawkeyes knocked the 'Cats out of the Big Ten tournament last year after NU swept the regular season series between the teams.
All four games will be broadcast LIVE on NUSports.com via CSTV's All-Access. To watch the games, navigate to the audio/video page on NUSports.com, where a link to the broadcasts will appear shortly before first pitch. All-Access is a premium service offering live and tape-delayed broadcasts of many Northwestern sports and includes exclusive interviews and press conference content.
Student-radio station WNUR 89.3 FM also will broadcast this weekend, covering Friday's game against Wisconsin and Sunday's doubleheader with Iowa. The second game Sunday is an internet-only broadcast.
