Northwestern University Athletics
Northwestern Opens 2011 Season at 27-Team Kajikawa Classic
2/9/2011 12:00:00 AM | Softball
Feb. 9, 2011
Northwestern's Complete Kajikawa Classic Game Notes Package (PDF Format) 
EVANSTON, Ill. -- Northwestern begins its 2011 season this weekend, Feb. 11-13, in traditional fashion, traveling to the Kajikawa Classic hosted by Arizona State for the sixth-consecutive year. This season's tournament features a record 27-team field and nine of the nation's top-25 ranked squads according to the preseason USA Today/NFCA coaches poll.
The Wildcats open the year with a pair of evening doubleheaders in the desert. NU faces No. 9 Oklahoma in Game No. 1 at 6 p.m. CT Friday, Feb. 11 before playing Bradley at 8:30 p.m. CT. On Saturday, NU will take on Western Michigan at 5:30 p.m. CT and No. 23 Oklahoma State at 8 p.m. CT. All four of those games will be played at the Tempe Sports Complex.
On getaway day Sunday, Feb. 13, Northwestern takes on North Texas at 10 a.m. CT at Farrington Stadium on the ASU campus. Gametracker will be available for all games at NUsports.com while fans can follow live Twitter updates from @NU_SportsLIVE.
NU enters 2011 with a strong mix of returners and newcomers, boasting three All-Big Ten veterans and a seven-member freshman class, which is the largest in head coach Kate Drohan's 10 years at the helm of the program.
Senior infielder/designated player Michelle Batts (Bloomingdale, Ill./Glenbard North) is a three-time All-Big Ten honoree while junior Adrienne Monka (Rancho Cucamonga, Calif./Rancho Cucamonga) has been honored twice in addition to her 2009 All-America first team selection. Sophomore shortstop Emily Allard (Antioch, Calif./Deer Valley) returns after a second-team All-Big Ten debut campaign in which she ranked eighth in the nation in steals per game.
Several freshman look to make immediate contributions this year. Most notably in the circle, Sammy Albanese (Belmont, Calif./Castilleja) and Jenny Tyler (Glendale, Ariz./Deer Valley) join returners Jessica Smith (Encinitas, Calif./La Costa Canyon) and Meghan Lamberth (Wildwood, Mo./Lafayette) to form NU's first four-'Cat rotation since the 1990s. Albanese has all the makings of a future ace, matching a California record with 10-straight no-hitters in 2010 after leading the state with a 0.06 ERA and 18.2 Ks per seven innings in 2009. The powerful Marisa Bast (Orange, Calif./Villa Park) will take over for four-year starter Nicole Pauly at second base, while lefty speed and power threat Mari Majam (Pine Valley, Calif./Mountain Empire) also should see immediate time in the Wildcats' lineup.
The "infusion of enthusiasm" provided by the freshman class was one of several reasons cited by ESPN.com's Graham Hays when he slated Northwestern at No. 17 in his top-20 preseason rankings. Despite a tough 2010 campaign for NU, the ranking also speaks to a national expectation of a bounce-back year for a program with a strong pedigree built by Drohan.
For Northwestern's complete game notes package for the 2011 Kajikawa Classic, download the .pdf at the top of this page.
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