May 7, 2000
EVANSTON, Ill. - Iowa scored twice in the bottom of the fifth inning to break a 1-1 tie and went on to defeat Northwestern, 3-1 on Senior Day at Anderson Field. Iowa (42-12, 14-4 Big Ten) clinched the Big Ten regular season championship with the win while Northwestern (26-22, 12-6) finished fourth.
After Iowa took a 1-0 lead on a wild pitch in the third inning, the Wildcats came back. Brooke Siebel (Brentwood, Tenn.) hit the first pitch of the top of the fifth over the centerfield fence to tie the game, 1-1. However, Iowa would come back, taking the lead on a suicide squeeze bunt. They added another on the second NU error of the inning and were able to hang on for the victory.
Northwestern qualifies for the Big Ten tournament as the No. 4 seed and will play fifth-seeded Wisconsin on Thursday in Iowa City. A start time has not been announced. Listed below are the first-round pairings for the tournament.
Thursday, May 11
Game One -- #3 Penn State vs. #6 Purdue
Game Two -- #4 Northwestern vs. #5 Wisconsin
Game Three -- #2 Michigan vs. Penn State/Purdue winner
Game Four -- #1 Iowa vs. Northwestern/Wisconsin winner