April 4, 2002
EVANSTON, Ill. - On its first conference road trip of the year, the Northwestern softball team (11-8-1, 2-0) will look to remain undefeated in the Big Ten as it plays four games on the schedule. The Wildcats opened the 2002 Big Ten season at home last weekend with a pair of wins over Indiana. This weekend, they will travel to Purdue (27-11, 0-2) for single games on Friday and Saturday, then to Illinois (20-13, 2-2) on Sunday for a noon doubleheader.
NU began the Big Ten season with a win for the fourth consecutive year. Junior pitcher Lauren Schwendimann (Tustin, Calif./Foothill) led the way in the Wildcats' 9-1 win in Game 1, pitching six innings and allowing four hits while striking out five. The victory was the eighth of the season for the right-hander, giving her more wins already this year than she had in all of 2001.
Schwendimann is not the only Wildcat to push past last season's totals in the first week of conference play. Sophomore J.C. Kira (Honolulu, Hawaii/St. Francis), the other half of the battery, collected three hits in the Indiana doubleheader to give her 18 for the season, three more than she had during her freshman campaign.
This weekend's competition should prove to be tougher than last weekend, as both Purdue and Illinois hold winning records this season and lead the all-time series versus NU.
Purdue opened the Big Ten schedule against Wisconsin, falling 6-4 and 6-1. The losses were the first for the Boilermakers in 12 games. Last year's first-team All-Big Ten honoree, Katie Crabtree, continues to lead Purdue in almost every offensive category. The senior is batting .338 with 10 home runs and five doubles.
"Our pitchers are going to have to hit their spots and contain Purdue's big bats in order for us to come out with a win," said Wildcat head coach Drohan. "They have the ability to change the course of a game with just one swing."
Illinois' softball program is only in its second year of existence, but has already established itself as a Big Ten contender. In its inaugural season, an all-freshman squad led by head coach Terri Sullivan finished fourth in the Big Ten (49-23, 12-8) and had a 4-2 record against ranked opponents. Last season in Champaign, NU fell twice to Illinois (4-2, 8-2). With no upperclassmen to speak of again this season, the Illini have already posted 20 wins.
"I have great respect for Illinois and what they have done in such a short period of time," said Drohan. "These games are huge for us."
The Illini came away from their Big Ten opening weekend with a 2-2 mark, splitting with No. 25 Minnesota and Wisconsin. Sophomore Sherri Taylor pitched all four games for Illinois. She has a 1.70 ERA and leads the squad in innings pitched with 116 and one-third.
Wildcat Weekend Schedule
Friday, April 5 * Purdue-West Lafayette, Ind./Purdue Varsity Softball Complex *4 p.m. EST
Saturday, April 6 *Purdue-West Lafayette, Ind./Purdue Varsity Softball Complex *noon EST
Sunday, April 7 *Illinois-Champaign, Ill./Eichelberger Field *noon CST (doubleheader)