World Series Run Comes to End for Northwestern, 5-0

Tuesday, June 6

Oklahoma City, Okla.

7:00 PM

Northwestern

50-15

Arizona

54-11

Northwestern

Arizona

2006 Women's College World Series trophy team

World Series Run Comes to End for Northwestern, 5-0

6/6/2006 12:00:00 AM | Softball

Box Score

June 6, 2006

OKLAHOMA CITY -- No. 4 seed Northwestern captured the imagination of a softball nation with a resilient, energetic and very purple run to the championship series of the 2006 Women's College World Series. Tuesday night at ASA Hall of Fame Stadium, that run came to an end with a 5-0 loss to Arizona in the best two-of-three finalé of the WCWS.

Seniors Kristen Amegin (West Sacramento, Calif./Elk Grove), Ashley Crane (Sammamish, Wash./Eastlake), Jamie Dotson (Santa Ana, Calif./Foothill), Courtnay Foster (Tucson, Ariz./Sahuaro) and Sheila McCorkle (Costa Mesa, Calif./Mater Dei) conclude their careers as the winningest class in Northwestern softball history. The quintet won 162 games as Wildcats, and put together the program's first-ever 50-win season.

In each of the quintet's four years at NU, they bettered their finish in the Big Ten and the NCAA Tournament, culminating in the 2006 Big Ten title and a run to the final pairing in Oklahoma City.

The game marked the 1,500th in Northwestern program history, dating back to its beginnings in 1976 when the official schedule included just seven games. The Wildcats conclude the 2006 season with a program record of 836-660-4, a .557 winning percentage. In her first five years at the helm of NU, Kate Drohan has a mark of 186-90-1, good for a .674 winning percentage which places her 24th among active Division I head coaches (minimum of five years).

In a World Series run that began with a dramatic, 10-inning win against Alabama, continued with a shutout of Tennessee and back-to-back jacks to eliminate UCLA before concluding against another bunch of Wildcats, the battle cry to start wearing purple reverberated throughout Oklahoma City. For the first time in 20 years, NU earned a spot in the eight-team field, and finished with its best result in the tournament in program history.

Northwestern's second-place finish at the Women's College World Series bests the program's previous top finish of third in 1984.

Arizona took Tuesday night's first lead in the bottom of the first. The red-clad 'Cats got a pair of singles before a sacrifice bunt moved the runners to second. A grounder to second base scored the run, with Crane making the smart play to get an out at first.

Northwestern responded with a pair of base knocks in the top of the second. Amegin and freshman Erin Dyer (Homer Glen, Ill./Lockport) both singled in the frame, but no runs came of the hits.

The purple-clad 'Cats continued to hit Arizona ace Alicia Hollowell well in the third. Sophomore Darcy Sengewald (Frankfort, Ill./Lincoln Way East), junior Katie Logan (Tempe, Ariz./Corona del Sol) and freshman Tammy Williams (Roscoe, Mo./Osceola) led off the inning with three-consecutive singles.

Hollowell, however, received a third-strike call to the next batter before forcing a foul out to get to two down in the inning. Amegin then worked herself a 3-2 count before getting just under a pitch and skying a big fly out to deep left field to end the frame.

Northwestern again threatened in the fifth inning, getting a one-out double from Logan. With two outs in the frame, Hollowell intentionally walked Garland Cooper (Mission Viejo, Calif./Santa Margarita Catholic) for the second time in Hollowell's career -- Hollowell also did it during a 4-3, eight-inning Arizona win on Feb. 5, 2005.

The intentional pass was the 20th of Cooper's career and her 12th of the season. She ranks sixth all-time in NCAA Division I in intentional walks and ninth in single-season history.

Again, Hollowell got herself out of the inning without allowing a Northwestern run.

Arizona added another run to its lead in the bottom of the fifth, using a single, an error and a wild pitch to put a runner on third with one out. A single into center then plated that runner before a two-out double gave UA a 3-0 lead.

'Zona added two more runs in the bottom of the sixth to take a 5-0 lead on five singles before Williams turned a fantastic 6-3 double play to end the inning.

With two outs in the top of the seventh, Logan, Williams and Cooper all singled to load the bases, showing that Northwestern would fight until the end -- the quality that endeared the bunch to fans around the country in NU's five WCWS games.

Canney finished the game with the loss, closing her season with a 26-9 record. Along with her fellow hurler Foster, the pair shattered team records for wins and strikeouts in a single season.

Logan was 3-for-4 in the game with a double, while Williams had a pair of hits.

Canney, Cooper and Williams all earned WCWS All-Tournament team honors, the first for Northwestern since Lisa Ishikawa in 1984.