Northwestern University Athletics
Photo by: S. J. Carrera, Inc.
Northwestern Announces 2020 Schedule
12/3/2019 9:27:00 PM | Softball
EVANSTON, Ill. – Northwestern head coach Kate Drohan announced Northwestern Softball's 2020 season on Wednesday. The Wildcats' challenging schedule consists of 13 home games and five non-conference tournaments, including matchups against some of the top competition from across the nation.
Northwestern, who concluded last season ranked No. 14 the final NFCA Coaches Poll, will face off against four of the eight programs to reach the 2019 Women's College World Series. The Wildcats will also take on 12 programs who finished last season ranked in the top-25, with seven of those matchups coming in the first 11 games.
Drohan's team is coming off a banner spring campaign in 2019, as the Wildcats captured their eighth NCAA Regional title in program history, while Drohan was recognized as the 2019 Big Ten Coach of the Year after leading the Wildcats to a program-record 21 Big Ten wins.
The Wildcats return all but two members of last year's squad, headlined by reigning NFCA and Big Ten Freshman of the Year Danielle Williams, along with All-Big Ten honorees Jordyn Rudd, Rachel Lewis and Maeve Nelson. Additionally, the Wildcats welcome in seven first-year newcomers who made up the 21st-ranked recruiting class in the country.
For the 13th time in the last 15 years, the Wildcats open their season at the Kajikawa Classic, hosted by Arizona State in Tempe, AZ (Feb. 7-9), where they will face 2019 Super Regional qualifier Tennessee, along with Utah, Seattle, Arizona State, and Portland State.
Northwestern will then travel to the second annual ESPN Clearwater/St. Pete Tournament (Feb. 14-16) as one of two Big Ten representatives, with challenging games scheduled against Georgia, Florida State, Virginia Tech, and Kansas.
Following their trip to Clearwater, the Wildcats will travel to the nation's most prestigious non-conference tournament, the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic, in Cathedral City, Calif. (Feb. 21-23). After dominating last year's tournament en route to a 4-1 record, the 'Cats return to Cathedral City to face off against 2019 Women's College World Series qualifiers Washington and Florida, as well as strong opponents in Auburn, Oregon, and Long Beach State.
From there, the 'Cats return to Norman, OK, the site of last year's Super Regional, to battle in the Oklahoma Invitational (Feb. 28 - March 1). The round-robin style tournament includes at least one matchup with last season's national runner-up, Oklahoma.
The 'Cats will conclude non-conference tournament play in Louisville, KY (March 6-8), where they will face off twice against the Louisville Cardinals in a rematch of last year's NCAA Regional Final in Evanston, where the Wildcats defeated the Cardinals twice in consecutive elimination games to advance to the Super Regional.
Northwestern opens Big Ten play on March 20th with a three game series vs. Michigan State in the Wildcats' first action at Sharon J. Drysdale Field of the season. Other home games include a visit from Iowa (April 3-5), a cross-town showdown against Loyola-Chicago, and a pair of three-game series against the 2019 Big Ten Champions, Michigan (April 10-12), along with 2019 WCWS qualifier Minnesota in their final series of the regular season (May 1-3)
The Wildcats' conference road trips include visits to Penn State (March 27-29), Illinois (April 8), Wisconsin (April 17-19) and Purdue (April 24-26). Northwestern was a combined 8-0 against those opponents last season.
Tickets to Northwestern's enticing home slate will go on sale early in 2020. Prices and availability will be announced at that time. Fans can stay tuned to NUSports.com and follow Northwestern Softball on Twitter and Facebook for future updates.
••••••
Be the first to know what's going on with the 'Cats -- Follow @NU_Sports on Twitter, become a fan of Northwestern Athletics on Facebook, check us out on Instagram, visit our Social Media page and download our mobile app from the Apple Store and Google Play! To get involved with the #B1GCats, become a season-ticket holder or join the Wildcat Fund!
Northwestern, who concluded last season ranked No. 14 the final NFCA Coaches Poll, will face off against four of the eight programs to reach the 2019 Women's College World Series. The Wildcats will also take on 12 programs who finished last season ranked in the top-25, with seven of those matchups coming in the first 11 games.
Drohan's team is coming off a banner spring campaign in 2019, as the Wildcats captured their eighth NCAA Regional title in program history, while Drohan was recognized as the 2019 Big Ten Coach of the Year after leading the Wildcats to a program-record 21 Big Ten wins.
The Wildcats return all but two members of last year's squad, headlined by reigning NFCA and Big Ten Freshman of the Year Danielle Williams, along with All-Big Ten honorees Jordyn Rudd, Rachel Lewis and Maeve Nelson. Additionally, the Wildcats welcome in seven first-year newcomers who made up the 21st-ranked recruiting class in the country.
For the 13th time in the last 15 years, the Wildcats open their season at the Kajikawa Classic, hosted by Arizona State in Tempe, AZ (Feb. 7-9), where they will face 2019 Super Regional qualifier Tennessee, along with Utah, Seattle, Arizona State, and Portland State.
Northwestern will then travel to the second annual ESPN Clearwater/St. Pete Tournament (Feb. 14-16) as one of two Big Ten representatives, with challenging games scheduled against Georgia, Florida State, Virginia Tech, and Kansas.
Following their trip to Clearwater, the Wildcats will travel to the nation's most prestigious non-conference tournament, the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic, in Cathedral City, Calif. (Feb. 21-23). After dominating last year's tournament en route to a 4-1 record, the 'Cats return to Cathedral City to face off against 2019 Women's College World Series qualifiers Washington and Florida, as well as strong opponents in Auburn, Oregon, and Long Beach State.
From there, the 'Cats return to Norman, OK, the site of last year's Super Regional, to battle in the Oklahoma Invitational (Feb. 28 - March 1). The round-robin style tournament includes at least one matchup with last season's national runner-up, Oklahoma.
The 'Cats will conclude non-conference tournament play in Louisville, KY (March 6-8), where they will face off twice against the Louisville Cardinals in a rematch of last year's NCAA Regional Final in Evanston, where the Wildcats defeated the Cardinals twice in consecutive elimination games to advance to the Super Regional.
Northwestern opens Big Ten play on March 20th with a three game series vs. Michigan State in the Wildcats' first action at Sharon J. Drysdale Field of the season. Other home games include a visit from Iowa (April 3-5), a cross-town showdown against Loyola-Chicago, and a pair of three-game series against the 2019 Big Ten Champions, Michigan (April 10-12), along with 2019 WCWS qualifier Minnesota in their final series of the regular season (May 1-3)
The Wildcats' conference road trips include visits to Penn State (March 27-29), Illinois (April 8), Wisconsin (April 17-19) and Purdue (April 24-26). Northwestern was a combined 8-0 against those opponents last season.
Tickets to Northwestern's enticing home slate will go on sale early in 2020. Prices and availability will be announced at that time. Fans can stay tuned to NUSports.com and follow Northwestern Softball on Twitter and Facebook for future updates.
••••••
Be the first to know what's going on with the 'Cats -- Follow @NU_Sports on Twitter, become a fan of Northwestern Athletics on Facebook, check us out on Instagram, visit our Social Media page and download our mobile app from the Apple Store and Google Play! To get involved with the #B1GCats, become a season-ticket holder or join the Wildcat Fund!
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