April 11, 2011
Northwestern's Michigan State Series Game Notes Package (PDF Format) 
EVANSTON, Ill. -- Northwestern continues a busy Big Ten week with a doubleheader Wednesday, April 13, against Michigan State at Sharon J. Drysdale Field. First pitch for the double-dip is scheduled for 2 p.m. CT and both games will be broadcast live in high-quality on BigTenNetwork.com.
The first game also will be broadcast live over the air on student-radio station WNUR 89.3 FM while audio from the second game will be available online only at sports.wnur.org. As always at Northwestern softball, admission is FREE and tailgating in encouraged!
Northwestern has won its last 12 meetings against Michigan State dating to 2005. The last four games between the two teams have ended in run-rule victories for the Wildcats, including wins of 15-0 (5) and 9-0 (5) last year in East Lansing, Mich.
Northwestern is coming off a split of a Big Ten series at Wisconsin. The series, originally scheduled to be single games on Saturday, April 9, and Sunday, April 10, was changed to a doubleheader Saturday because of severe weather in the Sunday forecast. The Wildcats built a 6-0 lead in the first game before the Badgers came back to stun NU, 9-8. Northwestern recovered to capture the second contest, 2-0, behind a three-hit shutout by freshman Sammy Albanese.
Sophomore Emily Allard ran her current hitting streak to 20 games with a 4-for-4 effort in game one against Wisconsin and a single base knock in game two. Senior Robin Thompson also had a strong day, going 4-for-5 in the first game with two runs and two RBIs. Junior Adrienne Monka drove in three runs with two doubles in game one Saturday, prompting the Badgers to walk her five times -- including three times intentionally -- the rest of the day. Monka's nation-leading on-base percentage now is a mind-blowing .685.
Freshman Marisa Bast put herself in a genuine hot streak with a 4-for-6 doubleheader, giving her a .438 batting average in NU's last five games. Senior Jordan Wheeler also has been strong at the plate, batting .368 over the Wildcats' last six contests.
(For Northwestern's complete Michigan State series game notes package, download the .pdf at the top of this page. Please note, national rankings in the notes will be updated when they are released by the NCAA prior to Wednesday's games.)
THE BROADCASTS
Game One: Kevin Danna (PBP) and Jamie Arkin (Color) have the call on BigTenNetwork.com and the game will be broadcast over the air by WNUR 89.3 FM.
Game Two: Cody Dunlap (PBP) and Kevin Danna (Color) have the call on BigTenNetwork.com and the game will have online-only audio available from WNUR 89.3 FM at sports.wnur.org.
SCHARK BYTES BLOG
Don't miss out on the best student-athlete blog on the internet today! Be sure to read sophomore Kristin Scharkey's Schark Bytes blog!
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! and subscribe to the NU Sports Express e-newsletter to receive the latest news, schedule updates and video and to interact with NU. For more information on following specific Northwestern teams online, visit our Social Media page!