Individually, Tami Jones, Mikie Chambers and Jenn Shull have made some big contributions to the Northwestern softball team on the field.
And having played together for four years, they can tell you exactly what they bring to the table.
At shortstop, Jones has been captain of the team for three years and has long been a focal point of the Wildcats.
“I first saw Tami play when we were playing each other before we came to college and I was definitely impressed with her,” Shull says. “She’s so quick and has such great range. She can get to every ball. I love watching her. She’s very fluid and has a lot of finesse in the way she plays.”
At second base, Chambers brings a knack for the game that has made her effective in the field and at the plate.
“Mikie is just a pure athlete,” Jones says. “She’s strong — I nicknamed her ‘Tank’ because she could run over the catcher and be safe. She’s done that a lot for us. She’s really strong on the bases and she’s really strong at second.”
Finally, Shull has solidified the first base spot for the Cats, and has been one of the team’s most productive hitters.
“Shull, she’s everything,” Chambers says. “She was our catcher, she was our third baseman, she is our first baseman. And I think this year she has turned into such a wonderful first baseman. We couldn’t have asked for anything better in a first baseman. She can do anything — she can scoop, she can field. And she comes up with hits, she’s so clutch.”
But individual talent isn’t what makes this particular trio of seniors so special. For them, the sum is much greater than the parts.
The three play with a comfort level that can come only from experience. And the fact that all three are good friends makes the situation even better.
“We’ve been playing with each other for four years, and more than teammates, we’re friends,” Shull says. “We clicked pretty quickly and have enjoyed playing with each other. And I think we also have a lot of trust in each other’s abilities and I know they can get the ball and make the play.”
Said Chambers: “You look over and you’re seeing your partner on the field. You know if we’re going to turn a double play where they’re going to throw the ball. It’s just a feeling that you’re so comfortable and you know who’s going to be out there with you and you know that they’re going to give 100 percent.”
The three have meshed their personalities into one strong force that guides the team. They all say they want to win, but they know that sometimes humor and friendship have to come first.
“We keep everything light out there. And I think it’s pretty consistent with the three of us. We make jokes, if somebody makes an error, we pick them up,” Jones says. “I love playing with them; it’s so comfortable out there, seeing their faces.”
And, as Jones suggests, their ability to blend together so flawlessly makes the team that much better.
“They complement each other,” coach Sharon Drysdale says. “Over time, you get to know each one of them. They’re all characters in their own right, and as you get to know them and the way they react to things that provides some consistency because there aren’t a lot of surprises.”
No matter how well they get along and how much they contribute — and all three have played key roles as NU contends for a Big Ten title — there is little doubt where the trio is most important.
Jones, Chambers and Shull are the only senior starters on a team dominated by underclassmen and must serve as team leaders above all else.
“I take pride in the fact that we are leaders,” Chambers says. “We know what it’s like to have gone to the Big Ten tournament and to have been one of the best teams in the Big Ten. We just want to relay that, especially since we have so many underclassmen on the squad and on the field — just that feeling of ‘You guys can get there, and we can get there together.'”
But while a strong, tight-knit senior presence could scare younger players — the three Cats admit it was a potential problem — their ability to manage the newcomers allowed even the most timid to fit right in.
Alyson Schulz is one of nine freshmen for NU this year, and she has had the difficult role of being the starting third baseman in an infield with three other seniors. Schulz says she quickly knew the transition wouldn’t be as tough as she feared.
“I was so intimidated. But after the first practice I knew it was going to be fine. They were making fun of me and I like that,” she says. “The first week we were here, they invited us out every night with them just to do stuff to get to know them.”
Jones, Chambers and Shull have done such a good job of welcoming the newest Cats to the squad that they have talked specifically about playing well just so the seniors won’t be let down in their last year.
“All the freshmen talked about it and we all want to give this to them so badly. We all know what it’s like to be a senior — even if it’s in high school,” Schulz says. “We know that we can talk to them about everything and we know that they’ll stick up for us. We’ve gone to them a lot about some stuff and we really admire them.
“We all look up to them so much. They’re not just solid players, they’re solid people.”
