By John Volk Under ordinary conditions, it would be unwise to draw big-picture conclusions 23 games into the collegiate softball season. In a sport so focused on the daily grind of four months of competition, a team’s strengths and weaknesses can’t truly be shown in the Kajikawa Classic and the Louisville Invitational.However, 2020 doesn’t count as an ordinary condition. Coming
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Pitchside is back, baby. This week, I’m going with the academic theme since we have reached the October crossroads of the halfway point in Big Ten play and also Northwestern midterm season. I have two midterms next week, and the ‘Cats soccer teams are facing some evaluations of their own in the form of pivotal Big Ten contests. This week,
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By Ari Levin Northwestern softball faces its toughest test of the year and perhaps in more than a decade this weekend as they take on No. 1 Oklahoma (52-3) in the super regionals. The Wildcats need to take two of three games to advance. Here’s what you need to know about Oklahoma before this weekend’s series. They’re really, really good
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By Ari Levin February 16, 2018: Kaley Winegarner was one out away from extra innings and giving Northwestern softball a chance at an upset win over Louisville in the season’s second weekend. It was 58 degrees in Raleigh, N.C., site of the 2018 ACC-Big Ten Challenge, a drop from 80 degrees at the beginning of the Friday doubleheader. The junior
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The Wildcats needed to beat the Louisville Cardinals twice on Sunday to win the Evanston regional. The ‘Cats took Game 1 by a final score of 7-0 before winning Game 2 4-3. The Wildcats move on to the Super Regionals for the first time since 2008 and will face the No. 1 Overall seed Oklahoma Sooners. Matt McHugh and Ben
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By Ari Levin When Nikki Cuchran came to the plate with the bases loaded in a tie game in the fifth inning, all she was thinking was “pass the bat.” Pitcher Danielle Watson was feeling the effects of a blister. So, when she left a pitch a little over the plate with not quite enough spin, Cuchran took advantage. A
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By Ari Levin After 11 hours of softball, the Wildcats stay alive for another day. Northwestern (45-11) rebounded from an early 2-1 loss against Louisville (35-21) to stave off elimination with an 8-1 win over Southern Illinois (34-15). Now, in order to advance to the Super Regionals, they must defeat Louisville twice on Sunday. “We just wanted to fight hard, get another chance to
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Evanston is playing host to the NCAA Softball Tournament for the first time since 2008, and the host Wildcats began their postseason run in a big way, churning out a season-high 15 runs and smacking Detroit Mercy 15-1. Ari Levin and Tim Hackett were there for all the action.
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By Ari Levin Coming off a disappointing conclusion to the regular season against Minnesota and the end of a 20-game win streak, the Northwestern Wildcats softball team begins postseason play. Still nationally ranked, Northwestern heads to the Big Ten Tournament looking to improve their national standing. There’s a strong chance that Northwestern needs to win the tournament, or at least
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By Ari Levin Just a first year, Skyler Shellmyer is already an emotional team leader for Northwestern softball. “Lightning in a bottle at all times,” is how assistant coach Caryl Drohan described the energetic center fielder and leader of dugout cheers. Shellmyer was ranked as the No. 25 recruit nationally, according to her Northwestern bio, based on her combination of
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Stay connected to the pulse of Northwestern.
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