For two days, no Big Ten team knew where the cards would fall into place.
Entering the final weekend of the season, only two games separated the top four Big Ten teams — Iowa, Michigan, Penn State and Northwestern. Even the NU softball team (26-22, 12-6 Big Ten) had a shot at hosting the Big Ten championships at Anderson Field.
The Wildcats could have finished at the top and hosted the tournament if they had won both games versus Iowa and Michigan had lost one of two against Michigan State.
But with Sunday’s 3-1 loss, NU will pack its bags for Iowa City, Iowa for the Big Ten tournament as the fourth seed. The Cats failed to place in the top two, which would have assured a first-round bye, and Penn State made matters worse by sweeping Ohio State to take third.
“It doesn’t feel very good to go from first to fourth with one inning or a pitch here or there, and it’s a shame that it had to come down to that,” NU coach Sharon Drysdale said. “I think we played very well down the stretch.”
Going into Iowa, the Cats will need to look past Sunday’s disappointment on and off the field and shift their attention to tournament play.
There is no clear-cut favorite in the tournament, with most teams splitting two-game series throughout the season. NU is no exception, going 1-1 against all but one team in the Big Ten.
“It’s about who plays the best in a given weekend,” Iowa coach Gayle Blevins said. “Anybody can get hot in the tournament. If your pitching is good and you get timely hitting, it can be a totally different experience.”
GHOSTS OF THE PAST: As the top four conference teams jostled for position down the stretch, the Cats were left to dwell on several costly defeats earlier in the conference season.
After placing fourth, NU’s attention was undoubtedly turned toward its road trips to Purdue and Indiana, where the team went .500 overall. Making eight errors in the two losses, NU gave away two games they clearly should have taken.
The two wins could have at least guaranteed the Cats a bye in the Big Ten tournament. Purdue squeaked into the field after Michigan swept Michigan State this weekend and Indiana finished in a familiar position — last in the conference with a paltry record of 4-14.
“Every game is important and every game is a championship game,” Drysdale said. “This happens every year — we get down to two or three teams that have a shot on the last weekend and it’s really easy to think, ‘Well, remember five weeks ago when it was really cold outside and we lost that game? That was as important as this one here.'”
Senior second baseman Mikie Chambers agreed.
“They come back to haunt you, but you learn from them,” Chambers said. “And we learned from them, and that’s why we’re the team we are today. They’re losses and they count.”
CATCHER IF YOU CAN: The search to find a replacement for ailing catcher Gretchen Barnes seems to have come to an end. Freshman Cindy Muran has been a fixture behind the plate during the last week of the regular season.
After Barnes left an April 21 game against Michigan State with an injury to her glove hand, Muran began sharing the catching duties with freshman Alyson Schulz. But after NU’s doubleheader against Ohio State April 28, Muran has caught every inning.
“I am really pleased with Cindy because she’s just been thrown back there and she’s accepted the challenge,” Drysdale said.
Last week Muran worked with all three Cats’ pitchers and their varying styles. The experience Muran had should be vital if Barnes can’t return for the Big Ten championships.
But unfortunately for NU, the opposing teams recognize Muran’s inexperience and are starting to exploit the new backstop. Iowa was off to the races Sunday, stealing four bases.
“I had a feeling they knew I wasn’t a real catcher,” Muran said, “so I knew they were going to run.”
