Northwestern softball ready for NCAA tournament matchup with Kentucky
EVANSTON, Ill. (BVM) — It has been another impressive season for the Northwestern Wildcats softball team, and now they will have their chance to make noise on the national stage in the 2021 NCAA Softball Tournament.
Playing an exclusively Big Ten schedule, the Wildcats came out of the gates hot in late February, winning their first nine contests. They would keep the good times rolling by winning seven of their next eight for a 16-1 start to the season.
Despite a couple of four-game losing streaks throughout the middle portion of the campaign, Northwestern has rebounded nicely, winning four of its last five games. Most recently, the team defeated Nebraska by a score of 6-5 on Sunday.
That night, the team also learned it had earned an NCAA tournament berth, the 19th overall in program history. Earning one of 32 at-large bids in the tournament, Northwestern will head to Lexington, Ky. to first do battle with the No.14-seeded Kentucky Wildcats. Notre Dame and Miami (OH) will also compete in the Lexington Region.
The 29-15 Wildcats have finished in the top-five of the Big Ten Conference nine times since 2010, and join Michigan and Minnesota as the only teams from the conference to make the NCAA tournament this season.
The NCAA regional trip for Northwestern is its sixth in the last seven years, as the program continues to thrive under coaches Kate and Caryl Drohan. In 20 years, the Drohans have led the Wildcats to 14 tournaments while becoming the winningest coaches in program history.
On the field, Northwestern is led by ace pitcher Danielle Williams who boasts an impressive 16-6 record with a 2.15 ERA. Williams has pitched 14 complete games this season in her 22 starts.
Meanwhile, Skyler Shellmeyer leads the Wildcats in batting average at .362, while power-hitter Morgan Newport is always a threat at the plate, hitting 10 home runs while driving in 38 runs this season — both team–high marks.
The Wildcats have made two trips to the College World Series under the Drohans, and they will look to get back to that point when the tournament commences on Friday night.
